afrinpost – Exclusive
Local sources report that on Tuesday and Wednesday of last week, massive fires broke out across extensive natural forest areas in the mountains between the plains of “Meydan Akbas” town and the villages of “Adama” and “Semalka” in Rajo sub-district, as well as around the villages of Albisk and Blelko. The fires, which have rekindled today in scattered spots, were allegedly started by elements of the “Failaq Al-Sham” militia, according to local residents.
Local estimates suggest that the fires have consumed approximately 9 square kilometers of forest and destroyed around 2,000 olive trees and hundreds of cherry and fig trees.
Over the past six years of the occupation of Afrin, these forests and olive fields have been subjected to extensive logging for firewood and trade by militias of the “Syrian National Army,” particularly the “Failaq Al-Sham,” which controls these villages. Each week, four trailer trucks loaded with firewood were transported, aside from the wood used for making charcoal. Due to the deteriorating state of the forests, this has now decreased to one truck per week. Consequently, the militias have resorted to burning the remnants and obstacles to extract the buried tree trunks with backhoes.
Militias also use various pretexts to seize more absentee properties and cut down as many trees as possible for firewood.
Observers and experts confirm the deliberate setting of these fires by the militias, given their ongoing efforts to obtain and produce firewood, the simultaneous outbreak of fires in numerous separate locations, the lack of participation by Turkish authorities in firefighting efforts inside and along the border, and the militias’ reluctance to take any action, except for the modest attempts by the “Syrian Civil Defense” teams.
