(Zaman Al Wasl)- Head of Raqqa Provincial Council warned Saturday of imminent disaster as all solutions prevent Euphrates dam collapse are time-wasting.
"Opening of al-Balikh Canal to relieve the pressure on the Euphrates dam'' has been of no use. On the contrary, it is exacerbating the problem and leading to the flooding of many lands and villages,” lawyer Mohammad al-Shawish said in statement posted online.
Al-Shawish assured that the problem of the Euphrates dam “can be solved by the warring side, the Islamic State forces and QSD (Syrian Democratic Forces) giving the technicians the time to solve the technical problem in the control panels.”
“Opening the canal of al-Balikh does not help the lake (behind the dam) except by 10%, and it is necessary to do more to reduce the danger of the dam exploding. The al-Balikh Canal will flood more than 95% of the agricultural land in the way of the running water that must be discharged. Many of the drainage channels locations in the al-Balikh canal are not completed which will lead to the lands and villages flooding. This was done by the U.S.-led Syrian Democratic Forces under the guidance of the International Coalition for military purposes.”
Al-Shawish said that the people of Raqqa “live off agriculture mainly, and in doing this, SDF has ensured that the people have lost their means of livelihood for years to come after the surface soil is washed away and exposed to salinity.” He continued that, “Fighting this black terrorism does not mean that we must destroy people’s hopes and transform farmers’ futures in the region into a dark future where they cannot provide for their children.”
He also warned that more than 150,000 hectares are threatened with “rotting, destruction and agricultural decay for many years to come in light of the foolish policy pursued by the coalition forces fighting terrorism, so the beneficiaries of these lands will not be happy with this the war.”
Al-Shawish concluded that whoever claims to liberate an area must "not burn the land before him and destroy the livelihood of those he is liberating, bury them and then make people declare his victory."
Al-Shawish called on those engaged in the offensive in Raqqa to think rationally and adopt more wise strategies in their plan to besiege al-Tabqa and Raqqa city.
He called on them to adopt strategies that place civilians and residents at the forefront of their priorities. Strategies which achieve the military aims and prevent support for the Islamic State forces without this conflicting with giving them a military truce sufficient to repair the turbines and control panels in the dam to solve this serious urgent problem.”
"The interest of Raqqa’s people is to preserve their livelihoods and properties, and this does not mean that they belong to the terrorist organization, nor does it mean that they welcome troops carrying hatred and contempt for them," he said. "It is a very difficult equation, but it is a lived reality with all of its painful details.”
He concluded his remarks by presenting some details of the suffering faced by those trying to save themselves by leaving Raqqa for the norther where, “they (the displaced) are treated with contempt and disregard by those who supposedly liberated them, other than international and humanitarian organizations offering only minimal assistance and their work is hindered by prevention and harassment.”
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