Muslum Etgu
05 June 2020•Update: 06 June 2020
SANLIURFA, Turkey
Turkey on Friday distributed food packages to 120 families in northern Syria.
The Disaster and Emergency Management Authority (AFAD) distributed the aid in six villages of Tal Abyad, cleared of terrorists during Turkey's Operation Peace Spring, the provincial governorate in Turkey's border province of Sanliurfa said in a statement.
Along with the food aid, face masks and toys were also distributed.
Syria has been ravaged by a civil war since early 2011, when the Assad regime cracked down on pro-democracy protesters.
Hundreds of thousands of people have been killed and more than 10 million displaced, according to UN estimates.
Turkey launched Operation Peace Spring last October to eliminate YPG/PKK terrorists from northern Syria east of the Euphrates River to secure Turkey’s borders, aid in the safe return of Syrian refugees, and ensure Syria’s territorial integrity.
In its more than 30-year terror campaign against Turkey, the PKK -- listed as a terrorist organization by Turkey, the US and the European Union -- has been responsible for the deaths of 40,000 people, including women, children, and infants. The YPG is its Syrian offshoot.
The Syrian regime so far registered a total to 106 coronavirus cases, including four deaths and 41 recoveries.
The coronavirus pandemic has claimed nearly 391,600 lives worldwide, with total infections in 188 countries and regions reaching over 6.66 million, while nearly 2.9 million people have recovered, according to US-based Johns Hopkins University.
*Writing by Erdogan Cagatay Zontur
