<p>Thousands of Kurdish residents of Afrin, located in northern Syria’s Aleppo province, marched through the streets of the city on July 5 calling for an end to Turkish military operations in the semi-autonomous Kurdish region.</p><p>Local Kurdish groups have been calling for the withdrawal of Turkish military forces from the region for months. However, the wounding of four civilians by Turkish artillery shelling</a> on July 3 has sparked a renewed protest. Various civil society groups, local militias, and political parties all participated in the demonstration.</p><p>Many in the crowd held signs showing jailed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) leader Abdullah Ocalan, while others heavily criticized Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Credit: YouTube/ANHA via Storyful</p><br />
