ISIL holds 56 residents from Hasaka villages captive amid large-scale assault

Terrorists of ISIL captured 56 people from the villages of Tal Hermez, Tal Shamiram, located in the surrounding of Tal Tamr town in the countryside of Hasaka, northeastern Syria.

Local sources in the area who spoke to SANA reporter said ISIL terrorists held captive at least 56 of the two villages’ residents and took them to an unidentified area.

Families fleeing ISIL arrive in Hasaka city, concerns raised over fate of locals who stayed behind
Scores of families who fled the terrorism of ISIS in Hasaka province gathered in the courtyard of the Assyrian Church in Hasaka city, and the prevailing feelings around them are sorrow over what happened in their hometowns and fear for those who stayed behind.

Janet Dankha, one of the survivors, said that she was lucky to arrive safely in Haska, adding “an unknown and terrifying fate awaits hundreds of families in the villages of Tal Tamr that ISIS attacked,” and voicing concern that they will meet the same fate of the people of Mosul and Sinjar Mountain in Iraq.

With tears in his eyes, Oshana David from Tal Hermez village tells of how he saw the death of his grandson by sniper fire and couldn’t do anything except flee with women and children from the barbarism of ISIL.

Anwar Abdoush from Tal Rumman village voiced concern over the fate of the youths who stayed behind in the villages near Khabour River to defend their homes, despite their limited numbers of resources, from ISIL and its arsenal of weapons which include heavy weaponry.
Benjamin Younan from the village of Tal Juma’a said that ISIL burned down dozens of homes and the churches in the villages of Tal Hermez, Tal Jazira, and Qabr Shamiya.

In a press statement, Assyrian Bishop Afram Athnil said that what is happening in Tal Tamr countryside in full sight of the world seeks to displace Syrians, but that will never happen because the men and youths of the area’s villages are standing valiantly to defend their homes, adding that Syrians’ hopes for restoring security to the country lie in the Syrian Arab Army.

The authorities in Hasaka city rushed to receive the families that fled ISIL, with the civil society and the Syrian Arab Red Crescent (SARC) branch providing humanitarian aid including food, blankets, and assorted supplies.

ISIL terrorists began an assault on Monday on the villages of Tal Hermez, Tal Shamiram, Tal Rumman, Tal Nasri, al-Aghibash, Touma Yelda, and al-Hawouz in Hasaka’s western countryside.

The terrorist organization also committed acts of atrocities, including killing, vandalism, armed robbery and destruction of scores of houses and churches, in addition to burning down the antique church of Tal Hermez, one of the oldest churches in Syria, among other crimes that claimed tens of lives, drove hundreds of people out of their homes and left scores of houses burned to the ground.
In their statements to SANA reporter yesterday, the locals noted that ISIS aims through targeting villages surrounding Tal Tamr near to Ras al-Ayn city to open a passage towards the Turkish borders to facilitate the procurement of weapons and mercenaries from Turkey.
The sources pointed out that the air forces of Washington and its a
llies were flying over the area without targeting ISIS terrorists during their attacks on locals.