Villagers say evacuated homes in Duhok are looted, damaged

DUHOK, Kurdistan Region — Six months after they fled their homes in northern Duhok because of clashes between the Turkish army and the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), a group of villagers returned and found their homes had been looted, their belongings stolen or destroyed.

"I saw all the doors were broken. The house supplies have been taken out into the streets, there was a mess," said Mahdi Naif, one of three men who snuck back to visit their village Roisy in the Batifa district. “The whole village was looted.”

"We found that they had left our houses in shambles," said Omer Ali, another villager who visited their homes. "The doors were smashed, no supplies were left for the people. What's left is not usable."

Roisy village has been abandoned for six months because of conflict between Turkey and the PKK. Eighteen families fled the community for safer areas in December. Four Turkish military bases have been established within close proximity of the village.

The PKK is an armed group fighting for greater rights for Kurds in Turkey. It has bases in the Kurdistan Region's mountains and the Turkish army frequently carries out cross-border operations against the group. Local civilians are victims of the conflict. They are targeted in bombing campaigns and driven from their homes. More than 500 villages have been emptied in the Kurdistan Region over three decades of Turkey-PKK conflict.

Eight kilometers south of Roisy, the village of Soryana is also worried about lack of security.

"There's no security here. We put a hand on our hearts and say we depend on Allah," said Ezzadin Rasheed, who lives in Soryana.

Last year, there were 15 families living in Soryana, but now there are only five.

Some 1,500 people have been displaced from 22 villages because of Turkey’s most recent operations, according to Christian Peacemaker Teams. Turkey launched operations Claw-Lightning and Claw Thunderbolt against the PKK in northern Duhok province in April.

 

Translation and video editing by Sarkawt Mohammed