Afrin protests over power shortage, prices turn violent

Karwan Faidhi Dri

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - The Kurdish city of Afrin in northwest Syria witnessed violent protests on Friday following days of demonstrations due to ongoing power shortages and high energy prices. The security forces shot at protesters, injuring one, according to a war monitor. 

Afrin was occupied by Turkey and its Syrian army during their military offensive against the Kurdish fighters in 2018, causing the displacement of hundreds of thousands of people - mostly Kurds. Since then, the city has seen violations of human rights, lack of basic services, and constant insecurity.

Residents of the city have taken to the streets in recent days, protesting against the price hike and power shortages. As of yet, their demands have not been met by relevant authorities. 

The city’s electricity is provided by “Turkish-Syrian Energy” or STE Enerji company. According to the power distribution schedule shared by the company on its Telegram channel, it has been providing 10 hours of electricity per day recently while the temperature has been over 30 degrees Celsius (86 Fahrenheit) in recent days. 



The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) reported the injury of a protester in Afrin’s Jandaris area after he was shot by the security forces on Friday.

STE Eneji said in a statement, seen by Rudaw English, on Friday that their headquarters in Afrin had been attacked and set alight by the protesters, describing it as “a terrorist act and systematic sabotage which targets the power infrastructure.” 

The company also shared a video of the attack by the protesters. 

Alexander McKeever, an open source investigator for the Syrians for Truth and Justice (STJ) organization, said in a tweet on Saturday that the protesters also set fire to Afrin's local council building. 

STJ describes itself as “an independent, nongovernmental organization, working on documenting human rights violations in Syria.”

Similar protests were reported in other Syrian cities under Turkish control such as Azaz on Friday.

The demonstrations come as Turkey has renewed its threats to carry out a fresh military offensive against Kurdish fighters in Syria.