23-12-24
# NES
– Since November 29th until December 22nd, RIC documented that Turkish/SNA attacks on NES have killed 56 civilians (& injured a further 73), 138 military personnel and 19 Asayish.
## Firat
– After the fierce resistance in Tishrin and Qereqozh, the offensive of SNA has collapsed. SDF took this opportunity to move forward, advancing to Manbij from two axis.
– SDF media delegate Ferhat Shami declared that SDF in now 13km away from Manbij.
SNA groups retreat into the city, with the sky too cloudy for turkish drones to see. [This is already outdated and there seems to be reports claiming for SDF to be in the city of Manbij. You can read here the statement of SDF: https://www.aanes-rep-eu.com/news/updates-from-the-sdf-operation-martir-aziz-arab-to-recover-manbij]
– Manbij residents talk about chaos inside Manbij city, with SNA groups looting, stealing and kidnapping civilians. The residents demand the entry of SDF.
– After a fighter of SNA kidnapped and raped a 7-year-old girl in Manbij countryside on Sunday, many members of the al-Bubna tribe rose up in arms against the occupation. Allegedly, the clashes that followed left dozens of dead SNA fighters. Allegedly, tribe leaders made contact with SDF anouncing the area was freed of mercenaries and that SDF is welcome to return.
## Cizire
– A mass demonstration in support of the YPJ took place in Qamishlo today. All-women YPJ units are taking part in the Tishreen Dam & Qaraqozak Bridge resistance.
– A meeting between SDF command Mazlum Abdi with the leadership of ENKS took place today, attended also by officials of the International coalition (US).
# Syria
– People of Al-Sqailbiyyah are protesting the burning of their Christmas tree by jihadists affiliated with HTS. Marching through the village, they carry a large cross to show that they are Christians and not afraid, shouting ‘Enough is enough!
HTS published a video apologising for the incident.
# Foreign policy
– Iraq has decided to cease providing crude oil to Syria starting from December.
Operations at the Baniyas refinery on Syria’s coast came to a halt after it stopped receiving crude oil shipments from Iran, which has been the primary supplier of Syria’s oil imports.
– Parliament of Catalonia promises to support the DAANES. The Self Administration must be at the table deciding over a new Syria, because without all parties present there will be neither a resolution nor lasting peace.
# Analysis
The SDF seized the opportunity and are making an advance towards Manbij. Since SDF kicked out ISIS in 2016, Manbij had years of democracy and stability. Now we see how the local population refuse to accept the Turkish occupation and the violent fundamentalists groups of SNA. We can see how the self administrations managed to get the vast majority of the people behind the idea of this revolution.
This is a very important victory, not just for the military aspect but also on the political side. Pushing back against the occupation is also a psycological blow for the turkish proxy groups, that find themselves in disarray in front of the advance of SDF. Phones and other devices captured in the advance of SDF are now showing their comunications, where desperate calls for help and scared comunications of fighters running away are being circulated in whatsapp groups. Their dependancy on Turkish military power makes them vulnerable to SDF counter attacks, because they don’t have contingency plans for those situations.
Still, Turkish air superiority is a massive challange for SDF advance. Advances towards Manbij are a big achievment, and we should celebrate it. But the war is not over, Turkish planes can become a nightmare not just for SDF but for all poeples of northern Syria. It is still not clear how much Erdogan will try to play political in his alliance with HTS, or how much he will go full on with military attacks.
But this will be something we will need to evaluate in the future, today let’s ceebrate this amazing victory of SDF!
Revolutionary greetings!