ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - A lawyer in Syria’s northern city of Kobane said Friday that homes of people linked to the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) were burned and dozens of houses looted after Damascus forces entered the city’s outskirts following last month’s ceasefire.
The allegations come amid mounting concerns over a worsening humanitarian crisis in the area.
Mustafa Muslim, a lawyer in Kobane, said that despite a late January agreement between the SDF and Damascus, the Syrian Arab Army has not withdrawn from the area.
“Most of the villages have been completely looted, and also those who were involved in political work or were affiliated with SDF, their houses have been burned,” Muslim said.
According to information obtained by Rudaw, as many as 70 villages near Kobane have reportedly experienced looting and destruction allegedly carried out by armed factions affiliated with Damascus.
Due to attacks by the Syrian Arab Army, residents of rural areas surrounding Kobane were displaced toward the city. Muslim said approximately 48 Kurdish-populated villages were looted after being evacuated.
In mid-January, the Syrian Arab Army and allied armed groups launched a large-scale offensive against the SDF, resulting in advances across parts of Aleppo, Deir ez-Zor, Raqqa, and Hasaka provinces.
Later that month, the SDF and the Syrian government announced an internationally brokered agreement aimed at ending hostilities and integrating Rojava’s civil and military institutions under state authority.
Despite the deal, Kobane has remained under a strict siege for more than three weeks, raising alarm over deteriorating humanitarian conditions.
Muslim said that for two days, electricity was the only service to partially return to the city, but not at sufficient levels. Several neighborhoods remain without power.
“In general, Kobane currently has about six to seven hours of electricity,” he said, adding that “while daily we need 60 to 70 megawatts, the electricity that reaches daily is about 20 megawatts.”
He added that water, internet, and all other services have been cut for 25 days, forcing residents to rely on well water, which he described as unhealthy.
“Because of that, disease has spread among the displaced persons who are sheltered in 70 places such as mosques and schools. Even two days ago, a child also lost his life,” Muslim said.
The humanitarian situation in Kobane remains particularly dire. According to the Kurdish Red Crescent, at least six children died in January due to limited access to medical services.
Regarding the possibility of displaced people returning home, Muslim said: “People can return, but no one has returned, because only one route has been designated and people fear being shot and killed by the army, because fighters are far from that road.”
More than 700 packages of essential medical supplies reached Kobane on Friday, Ahmed Mahmood, co-chair of the town’s health department, told Rudaw. The aid was provided by the Diyarbakir City Protection and Solidarity Platform, comprising more than 100 civil society organizations, professional chambers, and trade unions in Diyarbakir (Amed).
Sima Abkhezr contributed to this report from Erbil.