Geolocation
Airwars assessment
Three women were killed in alleged Turkish drone strikes on a civilian residence in the Kurdish village of Helincê, Aleppo governorate, on June 23rd, 2020, according to local sources. Two civilians were wounded.
Kurdistan24 reported that “a Turkish drone strike on Tuesday evening killed three civilian females at a residence in the village of Helincê, located outside the northern Syrian city of Kobani, according to local security forces.”
@ElhamAhmadSDC reported that the three women were active as women’s rights activists. ANF identified two of the victims as Zehra Berkel and Emine Veysi. Hawar News reported that Berkel was a coordinating member of the Kongra Star women’s movement. Reportedly, it was Veysi’s house that was targeted. The third victim was identified as Mizgin Xelil.
According to @DefteraRes, two other civilians were wounded.
The General Command of the Kurdish-led Internal Security Forces (ISF) wrote in an official statement: “We in the General Command of the Internal Security Forces (ISF) for Northeast Syria condemn the crimes of the Turkish occupation against our people and we also call on the International Coalition and the Russian Federation to do their duty.”
All sources blamed Turkey for the attack.
The incident occured in the evening.
The victims were named as:
Summary
Sources (16) [ collapse]
Media
from sources (19) [ collapse]
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The victims of the alleged Turkish drone strike on Helincê on June 23rd, 2020 (via @ElhamAhmadSDC).
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Damaged civilian property after alleged Turkish drone strikes on Helincê on June 23rd, 2020 (via ANF).
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Zehra Berkel (30) was killed in alleged Turkish drone strikes on Helincê on June 23rd, 2020 (via ANF).
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Zehra Berkel (30) was killed in alleged Turkish drone strikes on Helincê on June 23rd, 2020 (via ANF).
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Destroyed civilian home after alleged Turkish drone strikes on Helincê on June 23rd, 2020 (via @kendal77cudi).
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Damage after alleged Turkish drone strikes on Helincê on June 23rd, 2020 (via @kendal77cudi).
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An alleged Turkish drone strike targeted a civilian home in Helincê on June 23rd, 2020 (via @baxtiyarumut).
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Rubble after alleged Turkish drone strikes on Helincê on June 23rd, 2020 (via @baxtiyarumut).
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One of the victims of alleged Turkish drone strikes on Helincê on June 23rd, 2020 (via Hawar News).
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Aftermath of alleged Turkish drone strikes on Helincê on June 23rd, 2020 (via VDCSY).
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Statement on the alleged Turkish drone strike on Helincê on June 23rd, 2020, by the Syrian Democratic Council (via @Rojavanetwork).
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Geolocation notes
Reports of the incident mention the village of Helincê, for which the generic coordinates are: 36.853527, 38.379450. Due to limited satellite imagery and information available to Airwars, we were unable to verify the location further.