“A UCAV [unmanned combat aerial vehicle] belonging to the Turkish occupation bombed a convoy of civilians from North and Easter Syria who headed to the Tishreen Dam in order to stop the Turkish attacks on the Dam, which is a vital source of water and electricity for the people in northern and eastern Syria,” said the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) in a statement.
It added that the strike resulted in deaths and injuries.
Ankara has not commented on the incident.
The Democratic Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (DAANES), the de facto government of the Kurdish enclave, on Tuesday called on people to attend a demonstration on the crucial Tishreen Dam near Manbij city to protest the escalated attacks from the Kurdish-backed militia groups who call themselves Syrian National Army (SNA) on the dam.
The residents of Hasaka headed to the dam on Wednesday but came under the drone attack.
The SNA militants constantly attack Tishreen Dam and the strategic Qere Qozaq bridge.
The militia groups have controlled Manbij and Til Rifaat towns from the SDF since the collapse of Bashar al-Assad’s regime on December 8.
The SDF said in a separate statement later on Wednesday that the SNA also attacked their forces based on the dam, claiming to have thwarted all attacks.
“Our forces have successfully thwarted all the attacks of the Turkish occupation mercenaries on the villages north of the Tishreen Dam and the southeastern countryside of Manbij city… Many mercenaries’ vehicles and tanks were blown up,” it added.
The manager of the dam has repeatedly warned through Rudaw English that the dam is under threat, adding that any damage to its structure would put the lives of millions at risk, including Iraqis.
DAANES said on Tuesday that any attack on the dam “threatens a catastrophe extending from Raqqa to Iraq. Urgent intervention is an urgent necessity to protect lives and infrastructure.”
