PKK/YPG terrorist attacks around Tishrin Dam threaten civilians

MANBIJ, Syria

Attacks by the PKK/YPG terrorist group near the Tishrin Dam on the Euphrates River in Syria are endangering the lives of tens of thousands of civilians.

Since Dec. 20 last year, PKK/YPG terrorists have targeted areas around the dam, located in Manbij district of Aleppo governorate. Their long-range assaults with heavy weaponry have displaced around 50,000 civilians in 10 villages on the dam’s western bank.

The indiscriminate shelling has forced thousands of residents to flee to safer regions, where they are now suffering from a lack of basic necessities, particularly in harsh winter conditions.

Some civilians who were killed in the attacks remain unburied as aid teams are unable to reach the area due to ongoing violence and poor accessibility.

PKK/YPG terrorists have also taken more than 150 civilians hostage in the village of Ash-Shash. Those still in the area face extreme hardship, with no access to essential supplies.

Villages like Al-Kishla, Al-Hammadat and Al-Hajj Hussein, which are close to the front lines, have suffered massive destruction. Other nearby villages remain under constant threat of bombardment.
Residents are urgently calling for an end to the attacks and the delivery of critical humanitarian aid to the region.

The Turkish-backed Syrian National Army (SNA), which liberated Manbij from terrorist control on Dec. 9, 2024 during Operation Dawn of Freedom, is now engaged in clashes with PKK/YPG terrorists near the Tishrin Dam in southeastern Manbij.

*Writing by Asiye Latife Yilmaz in Istanbul