afrinpost – Exclusive
Many stories of sexual violence and torture have been leaked from behind the walls of Turkish-backed militia prisons, and with them details of horrific torture in its worst forms, practiced by members of the Muslim Brotherhood “Syrian National Army” against the Kurdish women kidnapped in the occupied Afrin region in northern Syria.
Sexual Harassment and Taking Drugs:
A formerly kidnapped Kurdish woman, who was kidnapped and detained in the prisons of Turkish-backed groups, testified to “afrinpost” saying: “The gunmen have turned us into a mere commodity in their hands, and actresses of pornographic films, while they were consuming hashish and drugs.”
The formerly kidnapped woman summed her long and hard story to us in a profoundly symbolic painting she drew herself: (The scene of a semi-naked woman standing in front of a camera lens, holding a numbered piece of paper with 11.)
She adds, “They were taking pills we did not recognize, and they used to put a white powder material on the table, and inhale it through their nose.”
Regarding the bad and shameful treatment, the formerly kidnapped says: “They used to tell us, ‘You are our captives (Sabaya), and we can do whatever we want with you’, and the Turkish officers were not only aware of everything was going on, but also they led the way to that.'”
Kurdish Kidnapped Women Were Raped:
The formerly kidnapped Kurdish woman “Nadia Suleiman” boldly shared many details about the behavior of Ankara’s Islamic militants. She spent more than two years in detention, moving from one prison to another. She spoke of stories of rape and sexual violence, and that they forced her to take off her clothes repeatedly during interrogation.
Nadia confirms that the kidnapped women were raped, saying: “Each of the detained women with her was subjected to multiple forms of torture, harassment, rape and insults.” She stated that she was raped several times inside the secret prison in which she was kept in al-Mahmoudiya neighborhood in the city of Afrin, and that she and others were tortured in various ways in front of and with the participation of soldiers and members of the Turkish intelligence.
After it was revealed that there were naked women in the prison of “al-Hamza Division” militia headquarters in Afrin, the women were transferred to the occupied city of Azaz, and Nadia says: “They put us in a prison in somewhat better conditions, and then they took us for interrogation again, and they filmed us and took us pictures repeatedly, telling us that we should memorize what is written on a paper to record it in front of the cameras.
Nadia recalled that “Saif Abu Bakr”, leader in “al-Hamza” militia, supervised the investigation, and that the filming was done with several clips.
In court, a judge refused to hear the details of what happend, asked her to remain silent, and threatened her, while the second judge listened to the story like an amusement, and mocked her despite the horrific details she was telling. Moreover, he threatened her and asked her not to tell anyone, if she wants to protect her honor and her family, otherwise she would be killed, pursued and returned to the same place she was in.
