ADA, Mich. — An Ada-based relief organization is figuring out how to deliver aid to northern Syria after President Donald Trump announced U.S. forces patrolling the border would withdraw from that region. Following this announcement last Sunday, Turkey quickly launched a military invasion.
Due to the escalating violence in border towns and villages, at least 130,000 people have been internally displaced.
"The number is expected to rise," said Steve Gumaer, the president and founder of Partners Relief and Development, a non-profit that works in conflict zones to bring aid to children. "We're talking about mothers, fathers, children on the run who are victims of incredible violence that is an overt attack on their well being and their existence."
Gumaer said he would put the estimate closer to 200,000 people. Partners and Relief Development is working to bring the displaced people blankets, mats, food, water and milk for babies. They have been working in Syria since 2016.
"Twenty-five feeding kitchens have been set up mostly around Hasaka," said Gumaer.
Since Turkey invaded on Wednesday, turmoil has broken out in northern Syria. Turkey's president Recep Tayyip Erdogan wants to establish a buffer zone along the border, in part because he views the Syrian Kurdish fighters as terrorists.
U.S. forces have worked alongside Kurdish forces for years, as both military and militia fought to quell the threat of ISIS in the region. The terror group lost its remaining Syrian territory in March, marking the end of the self-declared caliphate. Critics of Trump's decision say the United States is abandoning its allies by vacating the Turkey-Syria border region.
The clash between the Turkey military and Kurdish fighters has increased the need for relief workers in Syria, but also made it increasingly more difficult to help Syrian civilians.
"Now there's even less relief work being done in this state of conflict because of the violence and the diplomatic realities that aid organizations are generally expected to follow," said Gumaer. "Until there's a safe way to cross, until there's some kind of diplomatic settlement, it's highly unlikely that large-scale relief will happen."
Gumaer said the escalating violence is already impacting his relief workers in northern Syria. A Relief and Development Partners worker went into a northern city to help civilians there, when they were shot at from both the east and west sides of the city. The chaos forced the relief worker to turn around, unable to help any civilians.
"We are, however, committed to helping as many of the fleeing families that we can," said Gumaer.
The outbreak of violence has already impacted the area.
While there is no official death toll, Gumaer said his workers on the ground have tallied 45 Syrians killed in the conflict this past week. Included in that number is Sara Mohammed Hussein, a 7-year-old girl, who was injured in an artillery attack that required her leg to be amputated. Her 14-year-old brother also died in the attack, according to workers with Relief and Partners Development.
"These children—for us—they describe why we do what we do," said Gumaer.
On Sunday, Trump directed about 1,000 U.S. troops in northern Syria to begin pulling out "as safely and quickly as possible," according to Defense Secretary Mark Esper. The decision has been widely criticized by both Republicans and Democrats who say that moving U.S. troops will destabilize the region and risk the lives of Syrians and Kurdish allies.
"It's not only that the Turkish Army, Air Force and troops that are causing this problem," said Gumaer. "In this state of chaos, ISIS is escaping from camp populations and regrouping."
The Associated Press reported that on Sunday heavy fighting reached a displaced-persons camp in Ein Eissa that has 12,000 people in it. That includes about 1,000 wives and widows of Islamic State fighters and their children.
The Kurdish administration in northern Syria said about 785 Islamic State supporters took advantage of the chaos and escaped by attacking the guards and storming the gates.
Partners and Relief Development shared this video on Friday of a car bomb, which they say has been attributed to ISIS.
"It gets worse by the hour," Esper said of the fighting. "These are all the exact things" that U.S. officials warned Erdogan would probably happen in urging him not to invade.
Trump said Saturday that he is "an island of one" regarding his decision to remove troops from northern Syria. But he continues to defend the move, saying he is trying to get U.S. forces out of "endless wars."
The president's decision has even been condemned by West Michigan lawmakers. Both Reps. Justin Amash (I-Grand Rapids) and Bill Huizenga (R-Zeeland) have publicly criticized the move.
Huizenga said a withdrawal "abandons" our Kurdish allies.
Michigan's only independent congressman has been much more vocal in his critiques of moving U.S. forces. Amash has repeatedly said that the president is not completely withdrawing troops, rather moving them to another region in Syria, which opened the door to a Turkish attack.
"Despite President Trump’s bluster about ending endless war, he’s not ending anything. Our troops aren’t coming home; a small number were moved so Turkey could escalate the war," said Amash.
The president did announce that he directed $50 million in emergency aid for Syria to support Christians and other religious minorities there.
For people in West Michigan, Gumaer said if they want to help people in Syria, the best thing they can do is contact their local representatives.
"These are people who have assisted us in our war on terror," Gumaer said about the Kurdish fighters. "We were not there to help them fight their war. We went there to get them to fight our war against ISIS. So reproducing that story for and enabling our elected representatives to know that is step we can all take."
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