BERLIN: German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock warned against the threat of “new violence” in Kurdish-held northern areas of Syria as she left for a visit to neighboring Turkiye on Friday.
Her trip to Ankara comes almost two weeks after Islamist-led rebels overthrew Syrian president Bashar Assad, sparking popular jubilation but also concern about new turmoil.
“Those who want peace in the region must not undermine the territorial integrity of Syria,” she said in a statement.
Syria’s future is “hanging by a thread,” said Baerbock, who was set to meet her Turkish counterpart Hakan Fidan as well as members of the large Syrian refugee community on her one-day visit.
Before leaving Berlin, Baerbock said that people in the Kurdish-held northern Syrian border town of Kobani, also known as Ain Al-Arab, were “holding their breath again” in fear of “new violence.”
Turkiye has thousands of troops in northern Syria and also backs a proxy force there which has engaged in ongoing clashes with the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), a US-backed and Kurdish-led force.
Ankara sees the SDF as an extension of its domestic nemesis, the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), and said on Thursday that it would continue to push for Kurdish fighters in northern Syria to disarm.
The SDF on Thursday accused Turkiye and allied fighters of not respecting a ceasefire around the northern town of Manbij and encouraged residents to “take up arms against the (Turkish) occupation.”
Also on Thursday, thousands of people in the northeastern Syrian city of Qamishli demonstrated in support of the SDF and chanted against “Turkiye’s attack” in the region.
Baerbock said that Syria’s reconstruction and the return of refugees “can only work if people have no more fear of persecution.”
“This should also be in the interest of the Turkish government, as more than three million Syrian refugees live in Turkiye.”
She warned that Syria must not become “the plaything of foreign powers or an experiment for radical forces.”
Germany has also urged Israel to abandon plans to step up settlement in the occupied and annexed Golan Heights at the southwestern edge of Syria.
Israel seized the demilitarised zone there after Assad fell and launched hundreds of strikes on Syria to destroy the former government’s military assets.

DHAKA: The King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Center is helping build housing for thousands of Bangladeshis rendered homeless by this year’s devastating floods.

Bangladesh — one of the most vulnerable countries to climate change — faced a series of consecutive climate-related disasters this year.

Following the landfall of Cyclone Remal in May, communities in northeastern and southeastern Bangladesh were hit by flash floods and riverine flooding, affecting an estimated 18 million people. Many lost their homes or had them severely damaged.

The KSrelief-funded project launched earlier this week will help build 630 homes in nine worst-affected districts.

“The scale of the destruction highlighted the urgent need for sustainable relief projects,” Saudi Arabia’s Deputy Ambassador Abdulaziz Fahad Al-Ibrahim told reporters in Dhaka.

“(This) program is part of the ongoing humanitarian efforts made by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to support those affected by natural disasters around the world.”

The homes will be built by KSrelief’s local partner, the Sunbulah Welfare Association, which designed them to resist extreme weather.

“The floor of the houses will be made with concrete, while the walls and roof will be built with tin, which will be strong enough to withstand future flooding and cyclones,” Dr. Mohammad Shakir Hossain, Sunbulah’s founder and chairman, told Arab News.

The construction of one such home is estimated to cost around $1,400.

“We will complete the construction within the next three months. The first phase of construction works will begin next week,” Hossain said.

“More than 3,000 people will receive shelter … It will help a lot of people in the flood- and cyclone-hit areas. Many people in the villages can’t build a house like this. For them, a good shelter is a dream.”

One region where the houses will be built is the southwestern district of Pirojpur.

Imam Hossain, 30, a day laborer whose house was destroyed by Cyclone Remal in May, will be among the program’s beneficiaries.

“This house from KSrelief is a huge blessing for me, as my wife is expecting our first child,” he said. “It was quite impossible for me to afford to build a house on my own.”

In the northern district of Nougaon, many families affected by devastating flooding in June have been living in makeshift shelters ever since.

“It was a sudden flood, and the water levels reached up to 4 feet … Our old house was washed away by floodwaters in front of our eyes. We couldn’t do anything to save it. In the blink of an eye, we became homeless,” said Swadhin Hossain, a student who, along with his parents, grandmother and younger sister, will soon receive a new home.

“We are very happy (that) the authorities selected our family. It was impossible for me and my father to build a new house. I am grateful to KSrelief for standing with my family in this time of need.”