FSA fighter says Turkey’s Afrin op is their ‘fight for freedom’

Yeni Şafak daily spoke to Muhammed Zaib, a Free Syrian Army (FSA) fighter who is braving some of Afrin’s toughest fronts alongside Turkish troops as part of Operation Olive Branch. Affixed on his uniform is a Turkish Armed Forces (TAF) badge that reads “One will die and a thousand will arise.”

“I lost 52 from my family in this war. I learnt that Turkish soldiers were called ‘Mehmetçik’ as a shortening of Muhammad. We are each a Mehmetçik and this is our fight for freedom,” said Zaib, who was first faced with war at the age of 16.

Zaib slammed Turkey’s main opposition the Republican People's Party (CHP) for calling the FSA “a terrorist organization.”

“We fight for the same goal and die in the same trench. We are in harmony with Turkish soldiers and commanders. They treat us very well and they entrust us with their lives in Syria. It is difficult to understand how they can brand us with a ‘terrorist’ label without having spoken to us,” Zaib said.

“Our grandfathers fought together on many fronts throughout history. Now we are partners in fate, and that started in Jarabulus. The Turkish military are our Muslim brothers and sisters. We love them and they treat us with the compassion of a ‘protective brother.’ We cleaned Daesh together. Now we will clear the PKK. However we ultimately wish to clear all of Syria from invaders,” he added.

“I’m from Deir ez-Zor, but my father was in Homs as a civil servant when the war started. In a barrel bombardment by Assad, and 25 people fell martyr, including my brother, in one go. Then Daesh came to the region and eight of my family members were slaughtered together with the sons of my uncle for allegedly being “apostates.” I have 52 martyrs in my family.

“I found myself in war at the age of 16. We could not pursue education; my life passed with difficulties. I fought in the fronts of Kusayr, Deir ez-Zor, Aleppo and Idlib. First I took duties at the back of the fronts for the Faruk Brigades, then I went to the front and was wounded many times,” the FSA fighter said.

“My mother and father live at the Idlib-Atmeh camp now. The road is clear after Afrin. I really want my family to go to the Euphrates Shield region so they can be safe and return to normal life. We are seven brothers and we lost all connection over the years. Our battle is for our loved ones to live a life away from death and war, even if we die. I joined some conflicts in Afrin. We are not afraid of the PKK [Kurdistan Workers’ Party]. The organization is trying to slow down our advance with sneaky traps. I want to be a martyr, because many of my loved ones have become martyrs. Maybe I can join them,” said Zaib.

Operation Olive Branch commenced on Jan. 20 in Afrin to establish security and stability, eliminate PKK/KCK/PYD-YPG and Daesh terrorists, and save locals from their oppression and cruelty.

The operation is being carried out under the framework of Turkey’s rights based on international law, UN Security Council resolutions, its self-defense rights under the UN charter, and respect for Syria's territorial integrity.

The military said it is putting the "utmost importance" on not harming any civilians.

Afrin has been a major hideout for the PYD/PKK since July 2012, when the Assad regime in Syria left the city to the terror group without putting up a fight.

Cross-border attacks by the PYD/PKK terror group in southern Turkey started as the Turkish army operation in Syria’s northwestern town of Afrin continues.

The PKK is listed as a terrorist organization by Turkey, the European Union and the United States. The PKK has been conducting armed violence in the southeastern part of Turkey since 1984. More than 40,000 people, mostly civilians, have been killed in the three-decade long conflict.