#stopafringenocide

Afrin is a city in the northern region of Syria know as Rojava. Since 2011, when the Syrian civil war broke out, Afrin and Rojava have seen the emergence of a radical democratic project centered on social-ecology, rejection of patriarchy, and democratic participation. The YPJ/YPG and SDF militias have not only defended themselves from the threat of ISIS terrorist gangs, but have effectively defeated them in Syria.

Afrin has been a relative safe haven for refugees and internally displaced peoples. The population has almost doubled since the beginning of the war, with thousands of families of all different religious and ethnic backgrounds fleeing war in other regions. However, on the 20th of January this year the Turkish state invaded Syria under the Orwellian named “Operation Olive Branch” designed to crush the democratic project and ethnically cleanse Kurdish people from the city of Afrin.

Dr Hawzhin Azeez has been living in Kobani and working to rebuild after ISIS was defeated in their attack on the city. We were very lucky to have some of Hawzhin’s precious time today to talk to her over the phone direct from Kobani.

Here are some links for more information on this unfolding crisis:

News from the Ground in Afrin

Hawzhin Azeez Facebook

Hawzhin Azeez Twitter