29 January 2018•Update: 30 January 2018
By Cem Genco
HATAY, Turkey
Turkey's Humanitarian Relief Foundation (IHH) announced Monday that it provided aid to families who had escaped to Idlib from Syria's Afrin where the terrorist organization PYD/PKK is located.
"The PYD/YPG [terrorists] and the regime in the south do not allow the civilians who want to leave Afrin to do so. But some of them made their way to Idlib in hard conditions," the foundation’s media adviser, Selim Tosun, said in a statement.
"They couldn't bring anything with them. They need food, shelter, and healthcare. So we delivered humanitarian aid and food packages, blankets, rugs, carpets, diapers and various products to them," he said.
"The help we provide to people in need will continue. We are making efforts to meet their needs on an urgent basis," Tosun added.
Afrin has been a major hideout for the PYD/PKK terrorists since July 2012, when the Bashar al-Assad regime in Syria left the city to the terror group without putting up a fight.
On Jan. 20, Turkey launched Operation Olive Branch to clear PYD/PKK and Daesh terrorists from Afrin, northwestern Syria.
According to the Turkish General Staff, the operation aims to establish security and stability along Turkish borders and the region as well as to protect the Syrian people from the oppression and cruelty of terrorists.
The operation is being carried out under the framework of Turkey’s rights based on international law, UN Security Council’s decisions, self-defense rights under the UN charter and respect for Syria's territorial integrity, it said.
The military has also said that only terrorist targets are being destroyed and the "utmost importance" was being given to not harm civilians.
