US calls for accountability for the killing of Kurds on Newroz in Jindires

Rudaw

ERBIL, Kurdistan - The United States urged all parties to halt civilian attacks following the killing of four Kurds in the town of Jindires in northwestern Syria on the eve of Newroz, in a tweet posted on Saturday night.

The US Embassy in Syria, which has been physically closed since the beginning of the crisis in 2011, said the attack last month was a “threat to the stability” of the area and called for the perpetrators to be held accountable.

“Violence like that witnessed in Jindires on March 20 threatens Syria’s stability. We urge all parties to halt civilian attacks and call for accountability”, read the tweet.

Ankara-backed fighters of the Ahrar al-Sharqiya armed militia opened gunfire on a Kurdish family celebrating Newroz in Jindires on March 20, killing four people and wounding two others.

In the aftermath of the events, thousands of Kurds protested the killing of the celebrants of the Kurdish New Year, Newroz, and called for the expulsion of Turkey-backed armed groups

The sister of three of the victims told Rudaw on March 25 that the family was still threatened by the armed groups and appealed to international organizations and Turkey to bring the militias under control.

The Kurdish administration in northeast Syria (Rojava) and the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) have both condemned the murders.

The Afrin region, where Jindires is located, is historically a Kurdish area, but Kurdish residents have been subjected to discrimination and violence since Turkey and its Syrian allies seized control in 2018, ousting Kurdish armed forces.

By Azhi Rasul