ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - The United Kingdom embassy in Syria on Monday condemned a drone attack against a learning center in Hasaka province, northeast Syria (Rojava) late last week which killed four children and injured several others.
A drone targeted a learning center for girls, funded by the United Nations, on Thursday, killing four and injuring 11 others. The Kurdish administration said in a statement on Friday that the center is located only two kilometers away from a global coalition base against the Islamic State (ISIS), blaming Turkey for the incident.
The UK embassy in Syria, which has been closed since the beginning of the Syrian conflict a decade ago, condemned the Hasaka attack and the recent deadly attack in the Turkish-held town of al-Bab in northwest Syria.
“Children among those killed in two horrific attacks in al-Bab & al-Hasakeh in northern #Syria. The UK condemns these attacks & calls on all parties to respect international humanitarian law,” said the embassy, urging “all parties to de-escalate.”
Over a dozen people were killed and tens injured in the attack in al-Bab market.
The attack on Hasaka has been condemned by the coalition as well.
Turkey has not confirmed its involvement in the deadly attack on the learning center. However, the Turkish defense ministry said in a tweet on Friday that the People’s Protection Units (YPG) fighters tried to attack their forces in northern Syria but Turkish forces attacked and were able to kill five members of the Kurdish force, which is the backbone of the US-allied Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF).
Ankara has recently increased its attacks against Kurdish forces in Syria, and it threatens to carry out its third military incursion against them since 2018.
Turkey claims that the YPG is the Syrian offshoot of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) - an armed group struggling for the increased rights of Kurds in Turkey. Ankara considers both Kurdish groups terrorist organizations.
