Thousands of Kurds displaced from Afrin are stranded in their vehicles and on roads in the Shahba area of Aleppo province, as Turkey-backed militants escalate their offensive to seize the region from Kurdish forces. A local source informed Rudaw on Monday about the dire conditions faced by those attempting to flee.

Exclusive footage obtained by Rudaw shows a long line of cars and people stranded in freezing temperatures without access to heating or basic supplies. Many have been stuck near a cement factory and the Ahdas area since late Sunday.

“We’ve been here for hours, unable to move,” one individual told Rudaw, appealing to authorities to open the way and provide assistance.

The worsening situation follows a withdrawal of Syrian government troops from parts of Shahba earlier this week. Regime forces had been controlling border areas around Shahba but retreated in the face of defeats in western Aleppo by a coalition of militant groups led by Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), a Jihadist faction.

Hundreds of thousands of Kurds were displaced from Afrin in 2018 during a military offensive by Turkey and its Syrian proxies. Many of those who fled have since been living in Shahba and other Kurdish-held areas, enduring years of instability.

The escalating violence and deteriorating humanitarian conditions highlight the urgent need for international attention and intervention to protect displaced communities and ensure safe passage for those seeking refuge.