The Village of Dudyan in Aleppo: Interview

It has been more than a month now since the initial earthquake whose epicentre was in southern Turkey, causing widespread damage in the southern Turkey-northwest Syria border areas. The aftermath of the earthquake and subsequent aftershocks are still being felt in the region. Among the affected localities is the village of Dudyan in north Aleppo province, presently located in the ‘Euphrates Shield’ zone controlled by 'revolutionary' factions supported by Turkey. The village is known for how it changed hands multiple times in the fighting between those factions and the Islamic State prior to the commencement of the Euphrates Shield operation.

To learn more about the village and its present situation following the initial earthquake, below is an interview I conducted with the deputy head of the local council of Dudyan (Malik Zariq al-Nu‘aimi). This interview was conducted on 25 February, but the observations are still valid now for the wider region regarding the bad situation following the earthquake. The interview is edited and condensed for clarity.

Q: Could you tell us in condensed form about the present situation in Dudyan in terms of number of inhabitants and the largest families in it?

A: Regarding the council of Dudyan, six villages are administratively affiliated with it: Dudyan, Jaka, Kamaliya, Khalaftili, Baghidin, Qurah Mazr‘a. The inhabitants of these villages are a mix of Turkmen, Kurds and Arabs. In these villages there are displaced people from most of the region of Syria: they constitute a large proportion of the inhabitants (around 60%).