Thousands of Kurds took part in the funeral on Tuesday of four civilians killed the day before in northern Syria by pro-Turkish fighters while celebrating the Nowruz holiday, according to an AFP correspondent.
Waving Kurdish flags, the participants in the funeral, in the locality of Jandairis, close to the border with Turkey, decried the pro-Turkish groups which control this region.
"Fourth-class citizens"
Pro-Turkish fighters opened fire Monday on a Kurdish family who had lit a fire to celebrate Nowruz, a holiday marking the start of spring, killing four civilians and wounding three others.
"
My children (...) died for no reason
," said Koli Meho, 70, who lost her three sons and her grandson, crying.
According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (OSDH), the perpetrators of the shootings are members of Ahrar al-Charkiya, a group including jihadists, placed in 2021 on the list of American sanctions due to abuses against the local population.
Residents told AFP that the perpetrators of the shots were members of a dissident group of this formation, Jaych al-Charkiya.
“
We are protesting against pro-Turkish groups who do not let us move freely and live in safety
,” said Abu Jan, 42, who took part in the funeral.
"
They treat us like fourth or fifth class citizens, it's our right to celebrate Nowruz
," he added.
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In a tweet, Elham Ahmad, an official in the Kurdish administration which controls areas further east, called on “
the UN and human rights organizations to investigate
” the tragedy and “
sanction those responsible
”.
“
Turkey and the terrorist factions it supports are responsible for crimes against humanity
” in these regions, she added.
Thirty pro-Turkish groups share control of a border area where some 1.1 million people live and are accused of abuses, including arbitrary arrests and the confiscation of land and property.
Many Kurdish residents fled this region after it was taken over by pro-Turkish groups in 2018 following an offensive by Ankara.
The conflict in Syria entered its 13th year this month with more than 500,000 dead, several million displaced and a deep economic and humanitarian crisis.