Türkiye rejects claims of mass olive tree destruction in Syria’s Afrin

By Asiye Latife Yilmaz

ISTANBUL (AA) – Türkiye’s Center for Combating Disinformation (DMM) on Tuesday rejected claims that Türkiye has “cut down more than 2 million olive trees,” in Afrin, Syria, calling the allegations “entirely unfounded and disinformation.”

“Such content constitutes merely a renewed iteration of systematic black propaganda that has been produced and disseminated for years by terrorist organisations and their affiliates with the aim of targeting Türkiye,” the DMM wrote on Turkish social media platform NSosyal.

It underlined that such previously debunked allegations resurface, constituting a “deliberate perception operation,” particularly at a time when “Syria’s territorial integrity is being effectively reinforced and terrorist elements are being neutralized.”

“Türkiye’s presence in the region has made significant contributions to counter-terrorism efforts and to the establishment of an environment of peace, security, stability, and prosperity,” it said.

The center added that the claims are not based on any concrete or verifiable data and consist entirely of disinformation.