A Tale of Afrin
by Hammude
This is my narration of the chronicle of the region where I come from, the Afrin. Afrin was a peaceful city in North Syria that turned from a peaceful and sustainable city into a war-zone. The olive tree was the center of our livelihoods, of our traditional Kurdish practices, and of our ecosystems. Peace was kept unitl 2018 when Afrin was invaded. After the invasion, not only a deep humanitarian crisis arose but also an environmental one…
My name is Hammude and I am 18 years old. I am a Kurdish boy from Syria, and today I will share with you a story about a beloved city of mine called Afrin, located in the northern parts of Syria.
I was spending every summer in Afrin together with my family. I have so many memorable moments from our family house there, which lies right next to my grandparents’ house. Ever since 2011, after the breakout of the war in Syria, a democratic local group of Kurdish people took the leadership and the protection of Afrin into their own hands, trying to form their own Kurdish independent state.
At that time, the residents of Afrin were living very good lives, the economy was thriving, and people were working in peace, democracy and kindness. The crime was very low, and many residents excelled in the music industry, with many talented musical instrument players. The Kurdish leaders were promoting equality between men and women, without obligating the girls to wear hijab if they didn’t want to, without arranging marriages against their will or allowing women to work or join the army if they wanted. Any discriminatory behavior against women was not welcome.
Afrin city is among the richest cities in Syria, with fertile lands for planting seeds, fruits or vegetables. The olive tree is the most popular tree planted in Afrin. My great-grandfather planted 300 olive trees in the backyard field in our family house, with the oldest olive tree counting down to more than 200 years of age. It was some kind of family legacy for us, passed on from one generation to the next. This olive tree was producing so much oil and olives, that we used for our family and there was still much left to sell and make profits. I saw my grandfather wake up every morning to take care of the olive trees, keep them clean and healthy.
Afrin was a “green” city, surrounded by mountains, with many gardens, trees and flowers, with beautiful water springs and a long river (called “the black river”). The people didn’t build any factories around Afrin to protect the environment, and they kept the streets clean and garbage-free. The residents respected all the beautiful gifts of nature and tried to protect them.
Peace, prosperity and justice were kept in Afrin until 2018. In March of 2018, the Turkish state and the (pro-Turkish) Free Syrian Army attacked Afrin city, and managed to conquer it after 2 months siege. I was in Damascus at that time, where we received many family members who were running for their lives away from Afrin. The invaders engaged into blatant violations of International law. They also broke into houses, stole cars and personal belongings, burned down schools, city buildings and hospitals, leaving many sick people to die because they couldn’t find proper treatment, my grandfather among them. During the war, my uncle went missing and we still don’t know his whereabouts, and I also lost my best friend due to a bomb attack.
Our family home in Afrin was very big and had lots of comforts (like computers, television etc.) and my grandmother lived next door. When she heard that the military invading groups were coming, she went to our house and tried to save as many things as she could, but still the invaders conquered our family house, and they are still living there.
Not only the people of Afrin lost hope, but also nature was greatly hit by the invasion. The military invaders cut down or burned more than 150.000 olive trees, they lit fires in the streets, and they forbade people from taking care of their trees, leaving many olive trees to rot. They also forced people to sell all of their olive oil to the invaders at the lowest price, in order for them to resell it abroad and profiteer. My family lost more than 50 olive trees, and until now the invaders are forcing us to sell them our olive oil at the cheapest price. The military invaders also stole all of our olive pressing machines, making it impossible for us to make oil without their permission. The destruction of the olive trees was not only tragic news for Afrin city, but for all of Syria, as it raised the price of olive oil up to enormous amounts.
The war left many people unemployed and homeless, living in camps, separated from their families, coping with the grief of losing their loved ones. At that time many Kurdish people decided to go to Europe, in search for a better life. After one year, (2019) I also started my journey from Syria, carrying only good memories from a time long lost.
Thank you from the bottom of my heart for hearing my story.
At Pindos Mountains in Greece, Local Conference of Youth 2021
About
I am a young Syrian refugee that fled away from my home because I wanted to live in peace. For me living in Syria would either mean that I would have to join the army and be violent against other human beings or that I would be threatened for my life. Currently, I am living as a refugee in East Europe and I am trying through extremely hard and lengthy procedures to reunite with my family, who are all living and working in other European countries.