ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Dozens of thousands of Kurds displaced from Aleppo’s Kurdish-majority Ashrafiyeh and Sheikh Maqsood neighborhoods are in urgent need of humanitarian aid. Kurdish aid organizations rush to provide food, shelter, and medical care despite threats to staff.
Dilgash Issa, co-chair of the Kurdish Red Crescent, told Rudaw on Sunday that their organization is treating dozens of wounded from the clashes between the Syrian Arab Army and the Kurdish security forces (Asayish) during the Aleppo violence.
“The number of wounded individuals transferred to hospitals in Tabqa, Raqqa, and Hasaka is 118. Among them are 30 civilians, while the rest are security personnel,” Issa said.
He added that while medical supplies are relatively sufficient, “many of those who have been displaced are in need of heaters, bedding, and other essential items.”
Established in 2012, the Kurdish Red Crescent (locally known as “Heyva Sor a Kurd”) is the main humanitarian organization in northeast Syria (Rojava).
Deadly clashes erupted in Aleppo’s predominantly Kurdish quarters on Tuesday between Syrian state forces and Asayish. Both sides blamed each other for the fighting.
At least 82 people were killed in the clashes, including 43 civilians, 38 government-aligned fighters, and at least one Asayish member, according to a Sunday report by the UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR), which relies on a network of sources across Syria.
The Syrian government has also said that approximately 155,000 people have been displaced from the Kurdish-majority neighborhoods since the fighting began.
Issa stated that two of their staff members have also been missing. “Two days ago in Sheikh Maqsood, contact with them was lost. According to the information we have received, they were detained by forces affiliated with the Syrian government.”
Asayish also said that dozens of Kurdish men have been detained by the army for their alleged ties with the Kurdish forces. Asayish asserted that the men have no affiliation with them and held Damascus responsible for anything that may happen to them.
Issa also said that search and inspection operations continue to locate other potential casualties.