afrinpost-Exclusive
IDPs, loyal to Turkish-affiliated groups in the occupied city of Afrin, have imposed a fee on a construction contractor who acquired a property on Al-Ashrafiya Street. The IDPs, originally from Eastern Ghouta, constructed three stalls on the property without obtaining proper permits or consent from the landowner. The stalls include a bakery, a grocery store, and a motorcycle repair shop. The land was bought by the contractor from a local named Mustafa Hassan.
Recently, the contractor sold the land and when he asked the IDPs to remove the stalls, they refused and demanded $10,000 each as compensation. Eventually, the contractor agreed to pay half the amount upfront and the remaining half upon stall removal.
This practice of erecting unauthorized stalls is becoming more common in Afrin, with IDPs establishing various businesses without obtaining proper leases or permits from landowners. Many of these properties were seized by Turkish authorities and militias, who have transformed them into commercial spaces leased to IDPs. This situation has led to tension and disputes in the city.
