ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - A Syrian Kurdish family is urging authorities to allow them to return home following a ceasefire last week that ended clashes between the Syrian army and Kurdish forces.
In the city of Derik (al-Malikiyah) in northeastern Syria’s Hasaka province, families who fled fighting over the past decade are sheltering in abandoned schools and mosques as they struggle to meet basic needs. Many were displaced multiple times during Syria’s 14-year civil war.
Mohammed Arif, who was forced to flee Afrin with his family, said he was seeking safe passage to the northern city which was seized from Kurdish fighters in 2018 and is now controlled by Damascus.
“We want to return (to our homes) based on the provisions of the agreement,” Arif said, in reference to a ceasefire between Damascus and Kurdish officials that stipulates the return of displaced Syrians.
The ceasefire ended weeks of fighting between the Syrian army and the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) that worsened an already dire humanitarian situation, displacing tens of thousands with electricity and road cuts that limited humanitarian aid.
Arif’s wife, Zainab Rasheed, said displacement had taken a toll on the family.
“We want to return too. It has been 7-8 years since we left our homes,” she said.