Displaced Kurds return to destroyed homes in northeast Syria

More than 4,000 families of displaced Kurds have returned to the Sere Kaniye region in northeast Syria as part of an integration process between the interim government and the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF).

These people were displaced in 2019 during a Turkish-led offensive against the Kurdish-led SDF, a group that previously partnered with the United States to fight the Islamic State terror group. Many returnees find their original homes destroyed or occupied by others.

To address these losses, the Syrian government provides each returning family with $2,000 in assistance. However, many residents claim this amount is not enough to rebuild their houses. Some people, such as Daham Ibrahim, are forced to live in tents on the sites where their homes once stood because only a small fraction of the buildings in their villages remain intact. Authorities are currently working to remove families who are occupying the homes of displaced residents.

Mahmoud Khalil, the deputy commander of the Internal Security Forces in Hasaka province, said the government aims to facilitate the return of 1,000 people to the city within a month. People remaining in displacement camps are urging the government to speed up this process before the winter season begins.