People living in Afrin, which was liberated from the terrorist group PKK’s Syrian offshoot, the YPG, by the Turkish military and the Syrian National Army (SNA), want the terrorist group’s attacks to end on the fourth anniversary of the city’s liberation.

Turkey’s Operation Olive Branch, which ended on March 18, 2018, was launched on Jan. 20 the same year. Turkish forces and the SNA liberated six town centers, 282 villages, six village settlements, 23 strategic mountains and hills, one dam and 50 strategic points.

Fifty-four Turkish soldiers lost their lives, 236 soldiers were wounded, while 320 SNA soldiers were killed in action. Some 4,500 terrorists were killed in the operation

The operation in Afrin – which lies close to the border with Turkey's Hatay province – was widely expected in the wake of Operation Euphrates Shield, which cleared Daesh terrorists from Turkey's border between Aug. 24, 2016 and March 2017.

Afrin had been a major stronghold for the YPG/PKK since July 2012, when the Bashar Assad regime in Syria left the city to the terrorist group without putting up a fight. In order to end the terrorist group's oppression of local people, Turkey cleared the area of PKK-affiliated terrorists with 72 Turkish aircrafts striking targets following an announcement of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on Jan. 20, 2018.

Turkish security forces took the utmost care to not harm civilians, while the terrorist group, in contrast, used civilians as human shields. During the operation, the YPG/PKK targeted residential areas in the Turkish provinces of Hatay and nearby Kilis, launching missile attacks that killed seven civilians and injured 124.

Following Operation Olive Branch, many Turkish humanitarian agencies, including the Turkish Red Crescent, distributed food daily in the district center and villages to meet the needs of the people.

With the stability in the region secured, civilians began to return to their homes following March 20, 2018. The number of civilians who returned to their homes has reached 600,000 in the past four years.

Seven local councils were established after the liberation, to serve people’s needs, including providing assistance in farming, trade, culture, sports, health and education.

The councils have also been carrying out reconstruction and work to repair roads.

Turkey has also provided support in the health care and education sectors, opening a 100-bed hospital. There are five hospitals in the town center and medical centers established across different districts provide health care to locals free of charge.

Afrin’s liberation from the YPG/PKK terrorists also paved the way for a new curriculum to replace the one imposed by the terrorists.

Around 75,000 students in 272 schools, including the post-secondary institution Gaziantep University Afrin Education Center, receive education in the city.

Locals wary of being targeted by YPG/PKK terrorists

Afrin resident Mustafa Solaiman, who spoke to Anadolu Agency (AA) on Thursday, noted that the area has frequently been targeted in attacks.

“I’m from Afrin and I was injured in the rocket attacks carried out by the YPG/PKK 45 days ago,” Solaiman said, adding that the YPG/PKK targets innocent civilians.

Still receiving treatment, Solaiman said he is pleased with the health care services and thanked Turkey.

Meanwhile, Ibrahim Khalil Mustafa said that Afrin is gradually returning to normalcy and it has become much easier to conduct trade, but frequent attacks by the YPG/PKK terrorists confine people to their homes.

“We hope terrorist attacks end soon,” he said.

Another resident, Ahmed Isa told AA that Afrin has been revived to a great extent after Turkey’s operation, but YPG/PKK terrorists continue to target the city using rockets and car bombs.

“We want to live in peace,” he said.

Turkey eliminates 3 YPG/PKK terrorists in northern Syria

Meanwhile, the Turkish military eliminated three YPG/PKK terrorists in the Operation Euphrates Shield zone in northern Syria, the Defense Ministry said Thursday.

Since 2016, Turkey has launched a trio of successful counterterrorism operations across its border in northern Syria to prevent the formation of a terror corridor and enable the peaceful settlement of residents – namely, the Euphrates Shield (2016), Olive Branch (2018), and Peace Spring (2019) operations.

In its more than 40-year terror campaign against Turkey, the PKK – listed as a terrorist organization by Turkey, the United States and the European Union – has been responsible for the deaths of over 40,000 people, including women, children, and infants.

Local people living in areas held by the YPG have long suffered from its atrocities, as the terrorist organization has a notorious record of human rights abuses, ranging from kidnappings, recruitment of child soldiers, torture, ethnic cleansing and forced displacement in Syria.

The U.S. has primarily partnered with the YPG in northern Syria in the fight against the Daesh terrorist group. Turkey strongly opposes the YPG's presence in northern Syria, which has been a major sticking point in strained Ankara-Washington relations. The U.S. has provided military training and thousands of truckloads of weaponry to the YPG, despite its NATO ally's security concerns./DS