Amuda Incident families: We demand that those responsible be held accountable

AMUDA, Syria – During the commemoration of the 7th anniversary of the “Amuda incident”, the families of those killed demanded that those responsible for this incident be held accountable and that they formally apologize for what happened.

On 27 June of each year, commemorations are held in remembrance of civilians killed by the People’s Protection Forces (YPG) during demonstrations in the town of Amuda in North and East Syria in 2013.

The announcement by the families of those killed seeking a formal apology and punishment for those responsible comes a day after spokesperson for the YPG Nouri Mahmoud announced that they bear the responsibility for the tragedy and offer an apology to the families of the victims.

In a statement to North Press Agency, Abdelqader Wati, a member of the Magistrate’s Committee, stated that the Amuda families and their representatives in the local council settled on a series of points: “the issuing of a public apology to the residents of Amude and the families of the victims, formal recognition of responsibility for the incident, a willingness to provide material and moral compensation to the families, and official consideration for the victims as martyrs who have the privileges of the martyrs of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF).”

The General Commander of the SDF, Mazloum Abdi, had expressed his willingness to implement these demands, according to Wati.

Although earlier included among the demands of the Amuda families was a trial of those responsible, a common understanding was reached between the SDF and the families with the latter saying such a trail would ultimately be ineffective.

Wati stressed the most appropriate solution to solve the problem of Amuda is to establish reconciliation between families and the YPG.

Some family members were unsatisfied with foregoing a trial. Ahmed Omar, one of the families of the victims, told North Press, “Public apology alone is not enough. Rather, those responsible must be held accountable and the units committed a crime against people in Amude, and these officials still hold high positions in the Autonomous Administration.”

The statement of the families comes as after a meeting held between high-ranking officials of the SDF and YGP and the members of a committee charged with facilitating reconciliation efforts between the YPG and the relatives of the victims of the Amuda incident.

The apology by the YPG follows the rapprochement between several Kurdish parties with the backing of the United States and France.