2018 ends on an ominous note for Rojava. Betrayed by the United States, Turkish invasion seems inevitable. Can it be averted, except at the cost of other tenuous alliances between the Kurds and the Syrian regime or even Russia ? Of course, there is one solution. If the Kurdistan Regional Government supported their fellow Kurds in Rojava instead of Turkey any impending invasion could be blocked, since Turkey would hesitate to become entangled with the Pesh Merga and make an enemy of the KRG who it needs as a counterweight to the Iraqi government. But, as ever, power, money and trade mean more to the KDP than real Kurdish freedom
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Following Donald Trump’s surprise announcement that he is withdrawing US troops from Syria, we’ve received the following message from an anarchist in Rojava, spelling out what this means for the region and what the stakes are on a global scale. For background, consult our earlier articles, “Understanding the Kurdish Resistance” and “The Struggle Is not for Martyrdom but for Life.”
I’m writing from Rojava. Full disclosure: I didn’t grow up here and I don’t have access to all the information I would need to tell you what is going to happen next in this part of the world with any certainty. I’m writing because it is urgent that you hear from people in northern Syria about what Trump’s “troop withdrawal” really means for us—and it’s not clear how much time we have left to discuss it. I approach this task with all the humility at my disposal.
I’m not formally integrated into any of the groups here. That makes it possible for me to speak freely, but I should emphasize that my perspective doesn’t represent any institutional position. If nothing else, this should be useful as a historical document indicating how some people here understood the situation at this point in time, in case it becomes impossible to ask us later on.
Trump’s decision to withdraw troops from Syria is not an “anti-war” or “anti-imperialist” measure. It will not bring the conflict in Syria to an end. On the contrary, Trump is effectively giving Turkish President Tayyip Erdoğan the go-ahead to invade Rojava and carry out ethnic cleansing against the people who have done much of the fighting and dying to halt the rise of the Islamic State (ISIS). This is a deal between strongmen to exterminate the social experiment in Rojava and consolidate authoritarian nationalist politics from Washington, DC to Istanbul and Kobane. Trump aims to leave Israel the most ostensibly liberal and democratic project in the entire Middle East, foreclosing the possibilities that the revolution in Rojava opened up for this part of the world.
All this will come at a tremendous cost. As bloody and tragic as the Syrian civil war has already been, this could open up not just a new chapter of it, but a sequel.
This is not about where US troops are stationed. The two thousand US soldiers at issue are a drop in the bucket in terms of the number of armed fighters in Syria today. They have not been on the frontlines of the fighting the way that the US military was in Iraq.1 The withdrawal of these soldiers is not the important thing here. What matters is that Trump’s announcement is a message to Erdoğan indicating that there will be no consequences if the Turkish state invades Rojava.
There’s a lot of confusion about this, with supposed anti-war and “anti-imperialist” activists like Medea Benjamin endorsing Donald Trump’s decision, blithely putting the stamp of “peace” on an impending bloodbath and telling the victims that they should have known better. It makes no sense to blame people here in Rojava for depending on the United States when neither Medea Benjamin nor anyone like her has done anything to offer them any sort of alternative.
While authoritarians of various stripes seek to cloud the issue, giving a NATO member a green light to invade Syria is what is “pro-war” and “imperialist.” Speaking as an anarchist, my goal is not to talk about what the US military should do. It is to discuss how US military policy impacts people and how we ought to respond. Anarchists aim to bring about the abolition of every state government and the disbanding of every state military in favor of horizontal forms of voluntary organization; but when we organize in solidarity with targeted populations such as those who are on the receiving end of the violence of ISIS and various state actors in this region, we often run into thorny questions like the ones I’ll discuss below.
The worst case scenario now is that the Turkish-backed Free Syrian Army (TFSA), backed by the Turkish military itself, will overrun Rojava and carry out ethnic cleansing on a level you likely cannot imagine. They’ve already done this on a small scale in Afrin. In Rojava, this would take place on a historic scale. It could be something like the Palestinian Nakba or the Armenian genocide.
I will try to explain why this is happening, why you should care about it, and what we can do about it together.
First of All: About the Experiment in Rojava
The system in Rojava is not perfect. This is not the right place to air dirty laundry, but there are lots of problems. I’m not having the kind of experience here that Paul Z. Simons had some years ago, when his visit to Rojava made him feel that everything is possible. Years and years of war and militarization have taken their toll on the most exciting aspects of the revolution here. Still, these people are in incredible danger right now and the society they have built is worth defending.
What is happening in Rojava is not anarchy. All the same, women play a major role in society; there is basic freedom of religion and language; an ethnically, religiously, and linguistically diverse population lives side by side without any major acts of ethnic cleansing or conflict; it’s heavily militarized, but it’s not a police state; the communities are relatively safe and stable; there’s not famine or mass food insecurity; the armed forces are not committing mass atrocities. Every faction in this war has blood on its hands, but the People’s Protection Units (YPG/YPJ) have conducted themselves far more responsibly than any other side. They’ve saved countless lives—not just Kurds—in Sinjar and many other places. Considering the impossible conditions and the tremendous amount of violence that people here have been subjected to from all sides, that is an incredible feat. All this stands in stark contrast to what will happen if the Turkish state invades, considering that Trump has given Erdoğan the go-ahead in return for closing a massive missile sale.
It should go without saying that I don’t want to perpetuate an open-ended Bush-style “war on terror,” much less to participate in the sort of “clash of civilizations” between Islam and the West that bigots and fundamentalists of both stripes have been fantasizing about. On the contrary, that is precisely what we’re trying to prevent here. Most of the people Daesh [ISIS] have killed have been Muslim; most of the people who have died fighting Daesh have been Muslim. In Hajin, where I was stationed and where the last ISIS stronghold is, one of the internationals who has been fighting Daesh longest is an observant Muslim—not to speak of all the predominantly Arab fighters from Deir Ezzor there, most of whom are almost certainly Muslim as well.
The Factions
For the sake of brevity, I’ll oversimplify and say that today, there are roughly five sides in the Syrian civil war: loyalist, Turkish, jihadi, Kurdish,2 and rebel.3 At the conclusion of this text, an appendix explores the narratives that characterize each of these sides.
Each of these sides stands in different relation to the others. I’ll list the relations of each group to the others, starting with the other group that they are most closely affiliated with and ending with the groups they are most opposed to:
Loyalist: Kurdish, Turkish, jihadi, rebel
Rebel: Turkish, jihadi, Kurdish, loyalist
Turkish: rebel, jihadi, loyalist, Kurdish
Kurdish: loyalist, rebel, Turkish, jihadi
Jihadi: rebel, Turkish, Kurdish and loyalist
This may be helpful in visualizing which groups could be capable of compromising and which are irreversibly at odds. Again, remember, I am generalizing a lot.
I want to be clear that each of these groups is motivated by a narrative that contains at least some kernel of truth. For example, in regards to the question of who is to blame for the rise of ISIS, it is true that the US “ploughed the field” for ISIS with the invasion and occupation of Iraq and its disastrous fallout (loyalist narrative); but it is also true that the Turkish state has tacitly and sometimes blatantly colluded with ISIS because ISIS was fighting against the primary adversary of the Turkish state (Kurdish narrative) and that Assad’s brutal reaction to the Arab Spring contributed to a spiral of escalating violence that culminated in the rise of Daesh (rebel narrative). And although I’m least sympathetic to the jihadi and Turkish state perspectives, it is certain that unless the well-being of Sunni Arabs in Iraq and Syria is factored into a political settlement, the jihadis will go on fighting, and that unless there is some kind of political settlement between the Turkish state and the PKK, Turkey will go on seeking to wipe out Kurdish political formations, without hesitating to commit genocide.
It’s said that “Kurds are second-class citizens in Syria, third-class citizens in Iran, fourth-class citizens in Iraq, and fifth-class citizens in Turkey.” It’s no accident that when Turkish officials like Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu list the “terror groups” they are most concerned about in the region, they name the YPG before ISIS. Perhaps this can help explain the cautious response of many Kurds to the Syrian revolution: from the Kurdish perspective, regime change in Syria carried out by Turkish-backed jihadis coupled with no regime change in Turkey could be worse than no regime change in Syria at all.
I won’t rehash the whole timeline from the ancient Sumerians to the beginning of the PKK war in Turkey to the 2003 invasion of Iraq to the Arab Spring and the rise of ISIS. Let’s skip forward to Trump’s announcement on December 19: “We have defeated ISIS in Syria, my only reason for being there during the Trump Presidency.”
Has ISIS Been Defeated? And by Whom?
Let me be clear: Daesh has not been defeated in Syria. Just a few days ago, they took a shot at our position with a rocket launcher out of a clear blue sky and missed by only a hundred yards.
It is true that their territory is just a fraction of what it once was. At the same time, by any account, they still have thousands of fighters, a lot of heavy weaponry, and probably quite a bit of what remains of their senior leadership down in the Hajin pocket of the Euphrates river valley and the surrounding deserts, between Hajin and the Iraqi border. In addition, ISIS have a lot of experience and a wide array of sophisticated defense strategies—and they are absolutely willing to die to inflict damage on their enemies.
To the extent that their territory has been drastically reduced, Trump is telling a bald-faced lie in trying to take credit for this. The achievement he is claiming as his own is largely the work of precisely the people he is consigning to death at the hands of Turkey.
Under Obama, the Department of Defense and the CIA pursued dramatically different strategies in reference to the uprising and subsequent civil war in Syria. The CIA focused on overthrowing Assad by any means necessary, to the point that arms and money they supplied trickled down to al-Nusra, ISIS, and others. By contrast, the Pentagon was more focused on defeating ISIS, beginning to concentrate on supporting the largely Kurdish People’s Protection Units (YPG/YPJ) during the defense of Kobane in 2014.
Now, as an anarchist who desires the complete abolition of every government, I have no love for the Pentagon or the CIA, but if we evaluate these two approaches according to their own professed goals, the Pentagon plan worked fairly well, while the CIA plan was a total disaster. In this regard, it’s fair to say that the Obama administration contributed to both the growth of ISIS and its suppression. Trump, for his part, has done neither, except insofar as the sort of nationalist Islamophobia he promotes helps to generate a symmetrical form of Islamic fundamentalism.
Up until December, Trump maintained the Pentagon strategy in Syria that he inherited from the Obama administration. There have been signs of mission creep from US National Security Advisor John R. Bolton and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, who ultimately hope to undermine Iran on account of it supplying oil to China. This far—and no further—I can understand the concerns of a pseudo-pacifist “anti-imperialist”: war with Iran would be a nightmare compounding the catastrophe brought about by the war in Iraq. So yes, insofar as the YPG and YPJ were forced to coordinate with the US military, they were working with unsavory characters whose motivations were very different from their own.
To sum up: what has brought about the by-now almost total recapture of the territory ISIS occupied isn’t rocket science. It’s the combination of a brave and capable ground force with air support. In this sort of conventional territorial war, it’s extremely difficult for a ground force without air support to defeat a ground force with air support, no matter how fiercely the former fights. In some parts of Syria, this involved the YPG/YPJ on the ground with US backing from the air. Elsewhere in Syria, it must be said, ISIS was pushed back by the combination of Russian air support and the loyalist army (SAA) alongside Iranian-backed militias.
Outside Interventions
It would have been extremely difficult to recapture this territory from ISIS any other way. The cooperation of the YPG/YPJ with the US military remains controversial, but the fact is—every side in the Syrian conflict has been propped up and supported by larger outside powers and would have collapsed without that support.
People employing the Turkish, loyalist, and jihadi narratives often point out that Kobane would have fallen and YPG/YPJ would never have been able to retake eastern Syria from Daesh without US air support. Likewise, the Syrian government and the Assad regime were very close to military collapse in 2015, around the time Turkey conveniently downed a Russian plane and Putin decided that Russia was going to bail out the Assad regime no matter what it took. The rebels, on their side, never would have come close to toppling Assad through military means without massive assistance from the Turkish government, the Gulf states, US intelligence services, and probably Israel on some level, although the details of this are murky from where I’m situated.
And the jihadis—Daesh, al-Nusra, al-Qaeda, and the others—would never have been able to take control of half of Iraq and Syria if the US had not been so foolish as to leave an army’s worth of state-of-the-art equipment in the hands of the Iraqi government, which effectively abandoned it. It also helped them that a tremendous amount of resources trickled down from the above-mentioned foreign sponsors of the rebels. It also helped that Turkey left its airports and borders open to jihadis from all over the world who set out to join Daesh. There also appears to have been some sort of financial support from the Gulf states, whether formally or through back channels.
The Turkish state has its own agenda. It is not by any means simply a proxy for the US. But at the end of the day, it’s a NATO member and it can count on the one hundred percent support of the US government—as the missile sale that the US made to Turkey days before the withdrawal tweet illustrates.
In view of all this, we can see why YPG/YPJ chose to cooperate with the US military. My point is not to defend this decision, but to show that under the circumstances, it was the only practical alternative to annihilation. At the same time, it is clear that this strategy has not created security for the experiment in Rojava. Even if we set aside ethical concerns, there are problems with relying on the United States—or France, Russia, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, or any other state government with its own state agenda. As anarchists, we have to talk very seriously about how to create other options for people in conflict zones. Is there any form of international horizontal decentralized coordination that could have solved the problems that the people in Rojava were facing such that they would not have been forced to depend on the US military? If we find no answer to this question when we look at the Syria of 2013-2018, is there something we could have done earlier? These are extremely pressing questions.
No one should forget that ISIS was only reduced to their current relative weakness by a multi-ethnic, radically democratic grassroots resistance movement, that incidentally involved international volunteers from around the globe. In view of Trump’s order to abandon and betray the struggle against ISIS, every sincere person who earnestly wants to put a stop to the spread of apocalyptic fundamentalist terror groups like ISIS or their imminent successors should stop counting on the state and put all their resources into directly supporting decentralized multi-ethnic egalitarian movements. It is becoming ever clearer that those are our only hope.
What Does the Troop Withdrawal Mean?
I’m not surprised that Trump and the Americans are “betraying an ally”—I don’t think anybody here had the illusion that Trump or the Pentagon intended to support the political project in Rojava. Looking back through history, it was clear enough that when ISIS was beaten, the US would leave Rojava at the mercy of the Turkish military. If the forces of the YPG/YPJ have dragged their feet in rooting ISIS out of their last strongholds, this may be one of the reasons.
But it is still very surprising and perplexing that Trump would rush to give up this foothold that the US has carved out in the Russosphere—and that the US military establishment would let him do so. From the perspective of maintaining US global military hegemony, the decision makes no sense at all. It’s a gratuitous gift to Putin, Erdoğan, and ISIS, which could take advantage of the situation to regenerate throughout the region, perhaps in some new form—more on that below.
The withdrawal from Syria does not necessarily mean that conflict with Iran is off the table, by the way. On the contrary, certain hawks in the US government may see this as a step towards consolidating a position from which that could be possible.
However you look at it, Trump’s decision is big news. It indicates that the US “deep state” has no power over Trump’s foreign policy. It suggests that the US neoliberal project is dead in the water, or at least that some elements of the US ruling class consider it to be. It also implies a future in which ethno-nationalist autocrats like Erdoğan, Trump, Assad, Bolsonaro, and Putin will be in the driver’s seat worldwide, conniving with each other to maintain power over their private domains.
In that case, the entire post-cold war era of US military hegemony is over, and we are entering a multipolar age in which tyrants will rule balkanized authoritarian ethno-states: think Europe before World War I. The liberals (and anarchists?) who imagine that this could be good news are fools fighting yesterday’s enemy and yesterday’s war. The de facto red/brown coalition of authoritarian socialists and fascists who are celebrating this are hurrying us all helter-skelter into a brave new world in which more and more of the globe will look like the worst parts of the Syrian civil war.
And speaking from this vantage point, here, today, I do not say that lightly.
What Will Happen Next?
Sadly, Kurdish and left movements in Turkey have been decimated over the past few years. I would be very surprised if there were any kind of uprising in Turkey, no matter what happens in Rojava. We should not permit ourselves to hope that a Turkish invasion here would trigger an insurgency in northern Kurdistan.
Unless something truly unexpected transpires, there are basically two possible outcomes here.
First Scenario
In the first scenario, the Democratic Union Party (PYD) will make some kind of agreement with the Assad regime, likely under less favorable terms than would have been possible before the Turkish invasion of Afrin; both sides would likely make concessions of some kind and agree to fight on the same side if Turkey invades. If Russia signs off on this, it could suffice to prevent the invasion from taking place. Either YPG/YPJ or SAA will finish off the Hajin pocket, and the war could be basically over except for Idlib.
Both the Assad regime and the various predominantly Kurdish formations have been extremely hardheaded in negotiating, but perhaps the threat to both Rojava and the Assad regime is so extreme that they will choose this option. It is possible that this is one of the objectives of the Turkish threat, or even of Trump’s withdrawal: to force YPG to relinquish military autonomy to the Assad regime.
YPG, PYD, and company are not in a very good bargaining position right now, but the regime knows it can at least bargain with them, whereas if northern Syria is occupied by Turkish-backed jihadis and assorted looters, it is unclear what would happen next. Rojava contains much of Syria’s best agricultural land in the north, as well as oil fields in the south.
I can only speculate what the terms of this theoretical agreement might be. There’s lots of speculation online: language rights, Kurdish citizenship being regularized, prior service in YPG counting as military service so that soldiers who have been fighting ISIS all these years can return to being civilians rather than immediately being conscripted into SAA, some kind of limited political autonomy, or the like. In exchange, the YPG and its allies would essentially have to hand military and political control of SDF areas over to the regime.
Could Assad’s regime be trusted to abide by an agreement after they gain control? Probably not.
To be clear, it’s all too easy for me to speak abstractly about the Assad regime as the lesser of two evils. I’m informed about many of the atrocities the regime has committed, but I have not experienced them myself, and this is not the part of Syria where they did the worst things, so I more frequently hear stories from the locals about Daesh and other jihadis, not to mention Turkey. There are likely people in other parts of Syria who regard the Assad regime regaining power with the same dread with which people here regard the Turkish military and ISIS.
In any case, there are some signs that this first scenario might still be possible. The regime has sent troops to Manbij, to one of the lines where the massive Turkish/TFSA troop buildup is occurring. There are meetings between the PYD and the regime as well as with the Russians. An Egyptian-mediated negotiation between the PYD and the regime is scheduled to take place soon.
This first scenario does not offer a very attractive set of options. It’s not what Jordan Mactaggart or the thousands and thousands of Syrians who fought and died with YPG/YPJ gave their lives for. But it would be preferable to the other scenario…
Second Scenario
In the second scenario, the Assad regime will throw in its lot with Turkey instead of with YPG.
In this case, some combination of the Turkish military and its affiliated proxies will invade from the north while the regime invades from the south and west. YPG will fight to the death, street by street, block by block, in a firestorm reminiscent of the Warsaw ghetto uprising or the Paris Commune, utilizing all the defensive tactics they acquired while fighting ISIS. Huge numbers of people will die. Eventually, the Assad regime and Turkey/TFSA will establish some line between their zones of control. For the foreseeable future, there would be some kind of Turkish-Jihadi Rump State of Northern Syrian Warlordistan.
Any remaining Kurds, Assyrians, Armenians, Christians, and other minorities would be expulsed, ethnically cleansed, or terrorized. TFSA and related militias would likely loot everything they could get their hands on. In the long run, Turkey would probably dump the Syrian refugees who are now in Turkey back into these occupied areas, bringing about irreversible demographic shifts that could be the cause of future ethnic conflicts in the region.
We should not believe any assurances from the Turkish state or its apologists that this will not be the result of their invasion, as this is exactly what they have done in Afrin and they have no reason to behave differently in Rojava. Remember: from the perspective of the Turkish state, the YPG/YPJ are enemy number one in Syria.
Now let’s talk about Daesh. Despite the looming threat of invasion, SDF is still finishing off the Hajin pocket of ISIS. If it weren’t for the fact that Turkey is throwing Daesh a lifeline by threatening to invade, Daesh would be doomed, as they are surrounded by SDF, SAA, and the Iraqi army. Let me say this again: Trump giving Turkey the go-ahead to invade Rojava is practically the only thing that could save ISIS.
Trump has repeatedly said things to the effect that Turkey is promising to finish off ISIS. To believe this lie, you would have to be politically ignorant, yes—but in addition, you would also have to be geographically illiterate. This describes Trump’s supporters, if no one else.
Even if the Turkish government had any intention of fighting Daesh in Syria—a proposition that is highly doubtful, considering how easy Turkey made it for ISIS to get off the ground—in order to even reach Hajin and the Euphrates river valley, they would have to steamroll across the entirety of Rojava. There is no other way to get to Hajin. If you’re unfamiliar with the area, look at a map and you’ll see what I’m talking about.
The Assad regime holds positions right across the Euphrates River from both the SDF and Daesh positions, and would be willing and able to finish off the last ISIS pocket. As far as I’m concerned, I’d rather see the regime take the losses there to accomplish that than see YPG overextend itself and bleed any further. But the point here is that when Trump says something to the effect that “Turkey will finish off ISIS!” he is sending a blatant dog whistle to Turkish hardliners that they can attack Rojava and he won’t do anything to stop them. It has nothing to do with ISIS and everything to do with ethnic cleansing in Rojava.
If nothing else, even if Assad allies with the Turkish government, we can hope that the forces of the regime will still finish off ISIS. If Turkey has its way and does what Trump is talking about, beating a path all the way through Rojava to Hajin, they will likely give Daesh’s fighters safe passage, a new set of clothes, three meals a day, and this village I’m living in in exchange for their assistance fighting future Kurdish insurgencies.
So there it is: in declaring victory over ISIS, Trump is arranging the only way that ISIS fighters could come out of this situation with their capacities intact. It’s Orwellian, to say the least.
The only other option I can imagine, if negotiations with the Assad regime break down or PYD decides to take the moral high road and not compromise with the regime—who are untrustworthy and have carried out plenty of atrocities of their own—would be to let the entire SDF melt back into the civilian population, permit Turkey and its proxies to walk into Rojava without losing the fighting force of the YPG/YPJ, and immediately begin an insurgency. That might be smarter than a doomed final stand, but who knows.
Looking Forward
Personally, I want to see the Syrian civil war end, and for Iraq to somehow be spared another cycle of war in the near future. I want to see ISIS prevented from regenerating its root system and preparing for a new round of violence. That doesn’t mean intensifying the ways that this part of the world is policed—it means fostering local solutions to the question of how different people and populations can coexist, and how they can defend themselves from groups like Daesh. This is part of what people have been trying to do in Rojava, and that is one of the reasons that Trump and Erdoğan find the experiment here so threatening. In the end, the existence of groups like ISIS makes their authority look preferable by comparison, whereas participatory horizontal multi-ethnic projects show just how oppressive their model is.
Overthrowing Assad by military means is a dead project—or, at least, the things that would have to happen to make it plausible again in the near future are even more horrifying than the regime is. I hope that somehow, someday, there can be some kind of settlement between the regime and YPG/YPJ, and the regime and the rebels in Idlib, and everyone else who has been suffering here. If capitalism and state tyranny are the problem, this kind of civil war is not the solution, although it seems likely that what has happened in Syria will happen elsewhere in the world as the crises generated by capitalism, state power, and ethnic conflicts put people at odds.
What can you do, reading this in some safer and stabler part of the world?
First, you can spread the word that Trump’s decision is neither a way to bring peace to Syria nor confirmation that ISIS has been defeated. You can tell other people what I have told you about how the situation looks from here, in case I am not able to do so myself.
Second, in the event of a Turkish invasion, you can use every means in your power to discredit and impede the Turkish state, Trump, and the others who paved the way for that outcome. Even if you are not able to stop them—even if you can’t save our lives—you will be part of building the kind of social movements and collective capacity that will be necessary to save others’ lives in the future.
In addition, you can look for ways to get resources to people in this part of the world, who have suffered so much and will continue to suffer as the next act of this tragedy plays out. You can also look for ways to support the Syrian refugees who are scattered across the globe.
Finally, you can think about how we could put better options on the table next time an uprising like the one in Syria breaks out. How can we make sure that governments fall before their reign gives way to the reign of pure force, in which only insurgents backed by other states can gain control? How can we offer other visions of how people can live and meet their needs together, and mobilize the force it will take to implement and defend them on an international basis without need of any state?
These are big questions, but I have faith in you. I have to.
Appendix: Rival Narratives
Drawing on this helpful overview, here is a review of the narratives we often see from different sides in the Syrian civil war:
Loyalist narrative:
- Emphasis on how the US and other countries supported and financed rebels for their own geopolitical ends as the main cause for the escalation of the conflict.
- The existence of ISIS is mostly attributed to rebel support landing in the wrong hands and more fundamentally as a result of the fallout of the 2003 Iraq war.
- Emphasis on links and cooperation between so-called moderate rebels and groups like Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) in order to argue they are all part of the same problem.
- Varying views on the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) and its legitimacy. This seems to be different from loyalist to loyalist, with some thinking they are almost as bad as traditional rebels and others seeing them as allies against ISIS and Turkish-supported rebels.
Western, gulf Arab, and rebel narrative:
- Emphasis on the Arab spring and how the brutal suppression of (relatively) peaceful protests led to an escalation of the conflict and armed rebellion and eventually full blown civil war.
- Existence of ISIS mostly attributed to Assad’s actions. Often claiming how his brutal actions and reliance on sectarian militias created an environment in which ISIS could grow and gain support. Moreover, the point is made that Assad’s military deliberately targeted other rebels more than ISIS, and hence is for a large part to blame for its rise.
- Emphasis on how there is a clear distinction between moderate rebels and radicals, and we should separate the two in honest analysis.
- Views on SDF ranging from unfriendly to outright hostile. Often coushed in emphasizing cases in which the Syrian Arab Army (SAA) and the SDF worked together. In milder forms, this narrative criticizes a perceived overreliance on Kurds in majority Arab areas, while still recognizing the legitimacy of the organization in majority Kurdish areas.
Turkish narrative:
The Turkish narrative is basically the same as the previous on most issues, with the important exception that the hostility towards the SDF intensifies to the extreme. Here, the links between the SDF and the PKK are emphasized and the SDF is characterized as an illegitimate terror organization that is a threat to Turkey and suppresses local Arabs.
Western, Kurdish narrative:
- The conflict is often seen as a historic opportunity for the Kurdish peoples in their quest for nationhood. Emphasis on how Kurds were discriminated against before the war and how they can take matters into their own hands now.
- The existence and expansion of ISIS is mostly blamed on Turkey. Especially Turkey’s passivity during the battle of Kobane is highlighted, along with accusations of direct support of ISIS and importing ISIS oil.
- Regarding rebels, the views tend to come closer to that of loyalists. Rebels (in relevant areas, anyway) are seen either as Turkish proxies or as radical lunatics to whom Turkey can turn a blind eye. The line between rebels and ISIS is often blurred, though they aren’t lumped in together to the same extent as in the loyalist narrative.
- SDF is seen as one of the only sane and moral armed actors in a battle otherwise characterized by bad versus bad. Both rebel and loyalist atrocities are emphasized to support this point of view.
ISIS and radical Islamist narrative:
- The start of the conflict is seen as a great awakening of Muslims against their apostate Alawite overlords. Emphasis on the solidarity of foreign fighters towards their suffering Syrian brethren.
- This perspective includes ISIS itself and also Al Qaeda and similar radical groups, who see ISIS as a group that betrayed the jihadi cause.
- The rebels are seen as naïve sellouts serving the interests of foreign governments and implementing non-Islamic ideals on their behalf. Emphasis is also put on how rebels negotiate and reach deals with loyalists, only to be betrayed and lose territory.
- SDF are seen as atheist apostates on the US payroll. The chief difference with Turkey is perhaps the emphasis on lack of religion rather than connections to the PKK.
- In Hajin, where the last ISIS stronghold is, the American position is way behind the front, in artillery range but out of range of any weapons Daesh has, so they can sit there and pound away without being hit back, while the risks are run by ground troops of the People’s Protection Units (YPG) and Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF). This is precisely what the Turkish army would do to us if Turkey invades Rojava. ↩
- In fact, there are two major parties in Iraqi Kurdistan in addition to the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK). They each have their own armies and police; they fought an actual civil war once. They do not like each other at all. The Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP), the Barzani family dynasty, is more closely aligned with Turkey and the US; it was more closely aligned with Saddam Hussein before. They have bad relations with the administration in Rojava; they are roundly despised here because they basically stood aside and let the catastrophe in Sinjar happen in their own backyard while the PKK scrambled to rush into the breach. The Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) has better relations with Iran, PKK, and the administration here. There is a KDP-related militia called Rojava Peshmerga in Rojava; again, they have a poor reputation because they’ve spent the whole war doing very little while YPG has died in droves fighting ISIS. All this is simply to say that there is no single Kurdish position; there are reactionary Kurdish groups, too. ↩
- Mind you, the Syrian rebels were never homogenous; among them, you can find both an element aligned to Turkey and jihadis and an element aligned more closely with YPG/YPJ. Unfortunately, many of those who were interested in more “democratic” solutions to the situation in Syria were forced to flee the country years ago. ↩
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Unknown assassins kill leader of Kurdish-backed council in Syria
ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – A local council in the eastern Syrian city of Deir al-Zor announced that its co-head had been assassinated on Saturday.
According to the media center of the Kurdish-backed Deir al-Zor Civil Council, Marwan Fatih was killed by unknown assailants while on the road between the city and Hassakah, to the north.
The legislative body was formed in September with the aim of providing public services and managing the affairs of towns and villages liberated by US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF). The Deir al-Zor Civil Council has over 400 members, not a single member is a Kurd.
The UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) later released a statement that said Fatih had been killed when fired upon by “unknown gunmen from active cells in the east of the Euphrates River… bringing the total number of people killed since August 22, 2018 to 119, in different ways and new targets, in line with previous targets.”
No group has yet claimed responsibility for the killing.
In the past, the Islamic State (IS) and armed groups backed by Turkey have announced that they were responsible for previous assassinations of SDF-affiliated leaders. Many observers have also blamed the Syrian government for such incidents.
The leader’s death comes ten days after the surprise decision of US President Donald Trump to withdraw from Syria amid continued threats by Turkey to launch an invasion over its southern border into areas of Syria east of the Euphrates.
It’s not the first time prominent officials working with councils established by the Syrian Democratic Council (SDC) have been targeted.
Prominent tribal leader Bashir Faisal al-Huwaidi was assassinated in a vehicle in Raqqa in early November. IS claimed responsibility for the murder soon thereafter.
On March 15, Omar Aloush, a senior Kurdish official who played a key role with the US on stability efforts in Raqqa, was also assassinated in his home in Tal Abyad.
SDC Co-head Ilham Ahmed told Kurdistan 24 in December that she blamed Turkey for the killing of Aloush. She also claimed that Turkey and Turkish-backed rebels were behind any and all “explosion[s] in Manbij.”
Editing by John J. Catherine
Turkey ‘determined’ to drive out Kurdish forces from Syria
ISTANBUL — Turkey said Tuesday it is working with the United States to coordinate the withdrawal of American forces but remains “determined” to clear U.S.-allied Kurdish fighters from northeastern Syria.
Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu told reporters that “if Turkey says it will enter, it will,” in comments carried by private DHA news agency.
For weeks, Turkey has been threatening to launch a new offensive against the Kurdish fighters, who partnered with the U.S. to drive the Islamic State group out of much of northern and eastern Syria. Ankara views the Kurdish forces as terrorists because of their links to an insurgent group inside Turkey.
President Donald Trump announced the planned withdrawal of U.S. forces after a phone call with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan earlier this month.
The minister also said Ankara and Washington have agreed to complete a roadmap on the northern Syrian town of Manbij until the U.S. withdraws. Under the June deal, Kurdish forces would leave Manbij, in the western Euphrates valley, but delays have infuriated Turkey.
“It is crucial that the U.S. doesn’t appear as not having kept its promises,” Cavusoglu said.
He argued that Turkey has the “strength to neutralize” IS on its own and criticized France, which has promised to stay in Syria despite the U.S. decision.
Cavusoglu warned it would not benefit France if it was staying in Syria to protect the YPG, the main Kurdish militia in Syria.
Erdogan, speaking to reporters in Ankara, said Turkey was taking into account Trump’s announcement on Syria rather than French President Emmanuel Macron’s decision. The future of the international coalition against IS, which includes Turkey, the U.S. and France, remains unclear.
The Turkish president also announced that a delegation was heading to Moscow and that he would meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Turkey has been negotiating on behalf of the Syrian opposition with Russia and Iran, which support the Syrian government, as part of efforts to end the nearly 8-year civil war.
Trump announced last week that the U.S. will withdraw all of its 2,000 forces in Syria, a move that will leave control of the oil-rich eastern third of Syria up for grabs. Russia launched its military operation in Syria in 2015 to back its longtime ally President Bashar Assad.
Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryakov said Tuesday in an interview with the RIA Novosti news agency that it would be a “big mistake” to dismantle a hotline that Russia and the U.S. use to prevent potential clashes in Syria, despite the U.S. withdrawal, and said he sees no indications the Americans would do that.
Associated Press writer Nataliya Vasilyeva in Moscow contributed.
YPG-YPJ INTERNATIONAL MARTYRS (Photo by Chris Scurfield)
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Isis withdraws from last urban stronghold in Syria
Syrian Democratic Forces capture Hajin in Deir ez-Zor province after heavy fighting
Islamic State extremists have withdrawn from their last urban stronghold in Syria after weeks of intensifying clashes with Kurdish-led fighters that have splintered the remnants of the group’s leadership and raised fresh questions about the fate of its founder, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi.
Isis forces retreated to villages to the east of Hajin in the early hours of Thursday after several days of US airstrikes, which allowed Kurdish proxy forces to sweep into the town on the eastern bank of the Euphrates river. Clashes continued throughout the day, and western observers cautioned that the militants may be attempting to regroup for a counter-assault.
The fall of Hajin comes after the fight against Isis had stalled for several months, weighed down by the increasingly fraught politics of the seven-year war in Syria and its numerous spinoffs. Friction between two of its main protagonists, Turkey and the US, over Washington’s use of Kurdish proxies to lead the fight had been central to the slowdown, which raised fears that Isis was using it to consolidate after many months of withering losses.
The US had been urging Kurdish leaders to send experienced members to lead its proxy force in Hajin against a diehard contingent of around 2,500 Isis veterans of battles in Iraq and Syria, which have stripped the group of cross-border lands it once controlled and forced it to revert to guerrilla warfare. The US presidential envoy in the fight against Isis, Brett McGurk, said this week that nearly every Isis member in Hajin is thought to have access to a suicide vest.
Senior Isis leaders were believed to have sought refuge in Hajin over the summer, and Baghdadi is understood to have spent some time in the town since it became Isis’s de facto capital in late 2017. The surrounding province of Deir Ez-Zor was pivotal to the rise of Isis. Nearly 60% of the group’s revenues came from five nearby oil fields that were repeatedly attacked by US jets and quickly brought back online.
The province was an essential hub for Baghdadi’s couriers, drivers and intermediaries as the oil trade surged from 2014-15, and was seen as one of the few places left in a crumbling caliphate where Isis fighters could lay low.
Baghdadi is thought to have remained far from the fight in recent months, and western intelligence officials believe the fugitive leader to be in the northern half of Anbar province in neighbouring Iraq. Iraqi officials, however, suspect their quarry may have have been in Hajin more recently. “Most of the senior Isis leaders are based in Hajin,” said one senior official. “Moreover, the confessions of arrested Isis members all point to Baghdadi being there with his family.”
Isis’s leadership structure has collapsed over the past two years, leaving local leaders and sleeper cells to act without higher instruction. In north-eastern Syria, the focal point of the fight against the organisation, there has been aincrease in attacks in areas that had been cleared by the US-backed and Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), particularly the city of Raqqa, which had been one of two main hubs of power, Mosul in Iraq being the other.
The durability of the US-Kurdish alliance had been increasingly challenged since earlier this year, when the SDF suspended operations against Isis in eastern Syria as Turkey launched an operation to oust Kurdish forces from near its border in the country’s north-west.
The SDF has drawn heavily from local Arab populations to anchor the fight against Isis, but its leaders come from the ranks of senior Kurdish officials. As the fight against Isis winds down, the Kurds of Syria’s north-east have been weighing their options. A pledge of ongoing US patronage and weapons has kept the SDF in the fight in Hajin, but doubts about Washington’s future intentions and loyalties are increasingly testing the alliance.
Turkey’s announcement on Wednesday that it intends to send its military into north-eastern Syria poses a further challenge to the US-Kurdish pact. The US has described the planned move as unacceptable, but Ankara says it will defy the wishes of its Nato ally and will soon launch an operation aimed at pushing Kurdish groups allied to insurgents inside Turkey deeper into Syria.
A spillover from the fight in Syria is also believed to have energised an Isis revival in Kirkuk and Salaheddin in Iraq, local officials say. The number of assassinations and roadside bombs, trademarks of earlier insurgencies, have increased sharply in recent months.
Additional reporting by Nadia al-Faour
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KCK: The US decision is part of the international plot
KCK said: “This unwarranted decision by the US is a continuation of the international plot against Leader Apo. Our people and forces of democracy must rise up at once against the attack that is part of the plot against Lead
Kurdistan Communities Union (KCK) Executive Council Co-presidency protested the US issuing warrants for PKK founders and administrators KCK Executive Council Co-chair Cemil Bayik and PKK Executive Committee Members Duran Kalkan and Murat Karayilan, saying: “Our people and forces of democracy must rise up at once against the attack that is part of the plot against Leader Apo. The stance against this attack must be combined with the fight for Leader Apo’s freedom and the fight against the plot, and this multi-faceted struggle must be continued everywhere the Kurds live together with all forces of democracy.”
KCK Executive Council Co-presidency issued a written statement and said:
“The US has issued warrants for PKK founders and Kurdish Freedom Movement’s leading cadres, PKK, KCK and HPG administrators comrades Cemil Bayik, Duran Kalkan and Murat Karayilan with baseless excuses, and put rewards on them. This hostile approach against our Freedom Movement and the decisions that were made have no justification in politics, society, ethics, conscience, or universal law. This is an utterly ideological and political decision. This decision that could only be made with a hostile approach constitutes an attack against not just the PKK, KCK or HPG, but all Kurdish people fighting for freedom and democracy.
THE DECISION IS A CONTINUATION OF THE PLOT
Without a doubt, the states who implement the Kurdish genocide against Leader Apo, PKK and the Kurdish Freedom Movement they lead have been hostile since the beginning along with their international supporters, and have wanted to disband the movement through attacks. This attack has the same goals as the plot against Leader Apo launched on October 9, 1998 and ended with his imprisonment in Imrali on February 15, 1999. This unwarranted decision by the US is a part and a continuation of the plot against Leader Apo. There is a direct connection between this decision and the 1999 plot being foiled for the most part by Leader Apo’s power of great thought and our freedom struggle led by the PKK, and the Kurdish people’s struggle for freedom achieving a political power that affects Middle Eastern politics greatly.
On the other hand, the Kurdish people’s struggle for freedom has affected the Middle Eastern peoples’ struggle for freedom and democracy, and opened a new frontier for the peoples of the world in their struggle for freedom and democracy. Leader Apo’s understanding of democratic nation and democratic confederal social governance as an alternative to the state becomes an alternative for the whole world for the solution of political, social and economic issues. This decision being made at a time when trade unions in the UK, the birthplace of unionism, and democratic forces, writers and intellectuals throughout the world launch a campaign for the safety, health and freedom of Leader Apo; when the Kurdish people and forces of democracy fight for the freedom of Leader Apo with the slogan ‘Let’s break the isolation, demolish fascism and free Kurdistan’ is an approach geared towards stopping these developments as well.
Considering the timing of this announcement that constitutes a hostile attack against our Freedom Movement, and Leader Apo’s influence and PKK’s role in political developments in the Middle East as a whole, this attitude is a plot against the Freedom Movement and an immoral attack against the Kurdish people. The Kurdish people’s struggle for freedom has developed everywhere and Kurds have come very close to achieving a free and democratic life. This plot against the PKK means supporting the genocidal colonialist powers’ hegemony over Kurds through pushing back our freedom movement.
In all the developments in Kurdistan in the last 40 years, the PKK has had a determining role. This 40 year long struggle has a role in the presence and political influence of Kurdish political powers who oppose the PKK as well. It is impossible to make an analysis without considering the PKK’s role in all national, political and social developments in all parts of Kurdistan. Anti-Kurdish sentiment manifesting most frequently as an animosity against Leader Apo and the PKK is an expression of this reality.
PKK CARRIED OUT THE GREATEST RESISTANCE AGAINST ISIS ATTACKS
The issue most prominent in Middle Eastern and world politics in recent years has been ISIS attacks. The PKK has prevented a genocide in Shengal against Yazidis, who have the most ancient faith and culture of humanity, presenting a lesson in ethics and saving international and especially regional political powers from a heavy burden. It was the HPG-YJA Star guerrillas who held the Hewler gate during the ISIS attack and stopped ISIS from entering Hewler. It was again the HPG-YJA Star guerrillas along with the Peshmarga who removed the ISIS attacks and threats in Kirkuk and Sulaymaniyah. The HPG-YJA Star guerrillas who fought valiantly alongside YPG/YPJ fighters had a great role in the victory for the Kobanê resistance, supported by all peoples of the world and forces of democracy. The PKK didn’t just fight against ISIS, but took very important steps in creating a new Middle East based on the fraternity of Arabs, Kurds, Syriacs, Armenians, Circassians, Persians and Turks with the understanding of democratic nation.
The whole world knows that the YPG/YPJ fighters, who say they fight with Leader Apo’s line in mind, have been received in the French palaces, and representatives of the Rojava Revolution have been received in the US foreign relations halls. Throughout these years, the ones whose relationship with ISIS was most questioned and talked about have been Tayyip Erdogan and his government. Now the US putting rewards on administrators of PKK, KCK and HPG, who have paid a heavy price in the fight against ISIS, means support for Tayyip Erdogan’s and the AKP’s anti-Kurdish and anti-democracy policies. Those fighting against ISIS are attempted to be disbanded and those with a relationship with ISIS are being rewarded.
OUR PEOPLE AND FORCES OF DEMOCRACY MUST RISE UP AT ONCE
The peoples of the world and forces of democracy know that Leader Apo is the leader of freedom on the women’s freedom line, PKK is the leader of the struggle for freedom, and HPG is the guerrilla force fighting the struggle for freedom for the Kurdish people who are one of the most ancient peoples in history. The US can’t overturn this reality with ideological and political motives and unwarranted excuses. The US administration can’t make the American people, who they get their legitimacy from, believe these ugly lies. This approach and decision by the US has been made on political and financial interests, and made them into accomplices for genocidal and colonialist powers. Our people and the forces of democracy expected an approach that would show self-criticism for the 1999 plot against Leader Apo from the US, but they have taken on such an approach today, which will be put on trial by the peoples today and history tomorrow.
In the face of this unwarranted and immoral decision, the Kurdish people, the peoples of the Middle East and forces of democracy throughout the world can’t be expected to stay silent. At this point in time when people demand Leader Apo’s freedom and discuss removing the PKK from the terrorist organizations list in Europe, our people and the forces of democracy must take on a stand, and a fight against this attack on our comrades Duran Kalkan, Cemil Bayik and Murat Karayilan. Our people and all forces o democracy must rise up at once against this attack that took place as part of the plot against Leader Apo. The stance against this attack must be combined with the fight for Leader Apo’s freedom and the fight against the plot, and this multi-faceted struggle must be continued everywhere the Kurds live together with all forces of democracy. It must be put forth with great force that there will be a fight against these attacks geared towards disbanding the Freedom Movement in the person of these comrades.”
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Syria Kurds vow to fight off new Turkish attacks near Kobane
SYRIAN Kurds vowed to defend their lands as Turkey launched a new set of attacks on the border towns of Kobane and Tall Abyad today.
Members of the Women’s Union gathered at a stadium in the city of Manbij where they condemned the latest invasion by the Turkish state and highlighted the silence from the international community.
Banners declared: “Young people of Manbij will not accept the Ottoman invasion” as those gathered heard a statement read by youth activist Nesrin Berkel.
“The peoples of Syria will never be silent against the attacks and will defend their lands,” she promised.
Manbij Women’s Council spokeswoman Nadia Milhim called for resistance against the Turkish invasion and to escalate the struggle for the liberation of Afrin, Jarablus and al-Bab.
“The unity of the peoples of Syria will defeat Turkey and reject the attacks,” she said.
The latest offensive began on October 27, soon after an international summit was convened in Istanbul between Russia, France, Germany and Turkey to discuss the future of Syria.
It forced the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), whose main component is the largely Kurdish People’s Protection Units (YPG) to pause the fight against Isis in Deir ez-Zor in order to defend the towns of Kobane and Tall Abyad from the Turkish invasion.
An SDF statement said: “We call on the international community to condemn the Turkish provocations in the safe areas in Syria, and we demand our partners in the International Coalition show a clear attitude and stop Turkey from launching attacks on the region.”
Turkey insists that the SDF is a terrorist organisation linked to the banned Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) and claim that operations are necessary to secure its borders.
Turkish forces, allied with jihadists from the Free Syrian Army, invaded the peaceful city of Afrin in northern Syria in January.
Thousands of Kurds fled their homes amid allegations of chemical attacks and extrajudicial killings, along with the destruction of Kurdish statues and cultural icons.
The international community appeared to support the invasion and subsequent occupation by Nato’s second-largest army, allowing Turkish forces to act with impunity.
Syrian Democratic Council co-chair Emina Umer today paid tribute to six-year old Sara Rifat who was killed after she was shot in the head during a Turkish army attack on Tall Abyad.
“The invading Turkish state attacks against northern Syria target women and children.
“She has been martyred as the result of the agreements among foreign states that want to break the will of the Syrian peoples.”
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FOR DIRECT LINK TO YPG NEWS SITE:
https://www.ypgrojava.org/english
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Syria: Turkey must stop serious violations by allied groups and its own forces in Afrin
Turkish forces are giving Syrian armed groups free rein to commit serious human rights abuses against civilians in the northern city of Afrin, Amnesty International said today, following an in-depth investigation into life under the Turkish military occupation.
Research released today reveals that residents in Afrin are enduring a wide range of violations, mostly at the hands of Syrian armed groups that have been equipped and armed by Turkey. These violations include arbitrary detentions, enforced disappearances, and confiscation of property and looting to which Turkey’s armed forces have turned a blind eye. Some of these groups, and Turkish armed forces themselves, also have taken over schools, disrupting the education of thousands of children.
“Turkey’s military offensive and occupation have exacerbated the suffering of Afrin residents, who have already endured years of bloody conflict. We heard appalling stories of people being detained, tortured or forcibly disappeared by Syrian armed groups, who continue to wreak havoc on civilians, unchecked by Turkish forces,” said Lynn Maalouf, Amnesty International’s Middle East Research Director.
“Turkey is the occupying power in Afrin, and therefore is responsible for the welfare of the civilian population and maintaining law and order. So far, its armed forces have failed utterly in these duties. It cannot evade responsibility by using Syrian armed groups to carry out its dirty work. Without further delay, Turkey must end violations by pro-Turkish armed groups, hold perpetrators accountable, and commit to helping Afrin residents rebuild their lives.”
In January 2018, Turkey and allied Syrian armed groups launched a military offensive against the People’s Protection Units (YPG), the military force of the autonomous administration led by the Syrian Kurd Democratic Union Party (PYD). Three months later, Turkey and its allied forces seized control of Afrin and its surrounding areas, forcibly displacing thousands of people who fled and sought safety in the nearby al-Shahba region where they are now living in dire conditions.
According to several residents in Afrin, Turkey’s armed forces have a significant presence in the centre of the city, and in several surrounding villages. On 1 July, Turkey’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated that its armed forces will stay in Afrin to continue working on the development of the area.
Between May and July 2018 Amnesty International interviewed 32 people, some of whom were still living in Afrin and others who had fled to other countries or different areas of Syria. Interviewees named pro-Turkey armed groups including Ferqa 55, Jabha al-Shamiye, Faylaq al-Sham, Sultan Mourad, and Ahrar al-Sharqiye, as responsible for serious human rights violations.
On 16 July, Amnesty International communicated to the Turkish government a summary of its preliminary findings, requesting a response. On 25 July, the Turkish government responded questioning impartiality referring to the use of terminology such as ‘al-Shahba region’ and ‘autonomous administration’ without providing a concrete response to the findings.
Pro-Turkey forces responsible for arbitrary detention and enforced disappearances
Amnesty International interviewed several residents and internally displaced people who reported that armed groups had arbitrarily detained civilians for ransom, as punishment for asking to reclaim their property, or on baseless accusations of affiliation to the PYD or YPG. Local sources told Amnesty International of at least 86 instances of arbitrary detention, torture and enforced disappearance.
A woman displaced from Afrin told Amnesty International that her uncle had been taken away by members of a pro-Turkey armed group after he had returned to his village three months earlier. She said: “We don’t know where he is. He was head of ‘Komine’ [the local committee]. He is not affiliated with the PYD or YPG. He went back to Afrin because he was afraid he would lose his house. He stayed with his wife in another house because our village became a military base for the Turkish forces. One night he decided to ask the armed groups to take him to check on his home. The armed group escorted him to his house, but he hasn’t returned since then. They wouldn’t tell his wife where they took him.”
Two former detainees Amnesty International interviewed said they had been held by Sultan Mourad and accused of being affiliated with the YPG. They told Amnesty International they had seen journalists, teachers, engineers, activists, as well as former employees of the PYD and YPG fighters in the prison in Azaz where they were held.
One said: “I was detained near Afrin for two months. I was transferred to multiple detention facilities including in Maamalou, Damliou, and Baadino, all surrounding villages near Afrin, where I was interrogated by members of two armed groups and Turkey’s armed forces. All of the questions focused on my activities on social media, and accused me of being affiliated with the YPG since I reported on violations committed by Turkey during the military operation.
“I was taken to the al-Ra’i prison in Azaz operated by Sultan Mourad. I wasn’t tortured, but I saw men being beaten in front of me by members of Sultan Mourad just for fun, and at night the sound of men screaming echoed through the building. I was released without seeing a judge. I thought I would never make it out of there.”
Pro-Turkey forces responsible for property confiscation
Since March 2018, when Turkey and allied armed groups seized control of Afrin, hundreds of people have been returning to the city by foot through a mountainous route, as the YPG has blocked the official routes into the city, deliberately preventing displaced people from returning to Afrin. Many of those who managed to return found that their properties had been confiscated and their possessions stolen by armed groups allied with Turkey.
Ten people told Amnesty International that Syrian armed groups had confiscated properties and shops in Afrin. Displaced residents said they were informed by their relatives and neighbours that their homes were either being used by the pro-Turkey armed groups as military headquarters, or occupied by displaced families from Eastern Ghouta and Homs.
One teacher displaced in a camp in the al-Shahba region told Amnesty International that his house in Jenderes had been confiscated by Faylaq al-Sham. He said: “My neighbour told me that my home was confiscated. He sent me images that clearly show the name of Faylaq al-Sham written on the wall of the entrance door.”
Amnesty International also interviewed three displaced residents who reported that armed groups had confiscated their shops. A man and his son, a graphic designer, who owned three shops in Afrin said a relative had told them their home had been confiscated by the armed group called Ferqa 55. They also received pictures showing one of their shops converted into a butcher shop by a family from Eastern Ghouta. An owner of a supermarket in a village near Afrin told Amnesty International that a relative had told him recently that his supermarket was first looted, and was now being run by family from Eastern Ghouta.
One woman told Amnesty International: “The families from Ghouta are not to be blamed. They have been displaced like us, and are maybe in an even worse situation than us.”
Pro-Turkey forces responsible for looting of homes and businesses
Twelve people told Amnesty International they had witnessed or been victims of looting. Several displaced people were told by their relatives that their home had either been completely looted or were missing expensive appliances such as their TV sets, computers, washing machines or refrigerators.
In April 2018, a representative of the military court claimed in a media interview that there had been looting incidents during the military operation, by both armed members and civilians, but that the court had begun to return the belongings to their owners. The court representative explained that, in coordination with the military police in Azaz and Turkey’s armed forces, the individuals responsible for the looting had been arrested and referred to court. But one person who returned to Afrin in May told Amnesty International: “I went to my parents’ home and it was empty. They stole every piece of furniture, appliances, and everything else. The neighbours saw the Free Syrian Army packing all the furniture in trucks. There are at least four armed groups in control of the village, so they don’t know which one was responsible.”
A resident from Afrin who sought refuge in Germany told Amnesty International: “I have five apartments in Afrin city and a commercial shop. My friend told me that two of my homes are now occupied by displaced families. I managed to get the phone number of two families, one from Harasta and another from Eastern Ghouta. I called them to ask them to take care of the house but they told me that the house was already looted when they moved in. I had just renovated the house. My problem is not with the families living in the house, but with the armed groups.”
“All parties to Syria’s conflict, including the YPG, Turkey’s armed forces and local armed groups, should facilitate the safe and voluntary return of people to Afrin”, said Lynn Maalouf.
“As the occupying power, Turkey must provide full reparation to those whose homes have been confiscated, destroyed, or looted by security forces or by their allies. It is Turkey’s duty to ensure that displaced civilians are able to return to their homes in Afrin and are afforded restitution, or where this is not possible, compensation.”
Turkey and armed groups responsible for the military use of schools
Since January 2018, access to education has been nearly impossible for people in Afrin. Residents told Amnesty International that since March, children had been able to access only one school in Afrin city, while Afrin University has been completely shut down after it was destroyed and looted. According to former teachers displaced to the al-Shahba region, Turkish forces, alongside allied Syrian armed groups, are using Amir Ghabari School in Afrin as military headquarters. Amnesty International reviewed satellite imagery from 20 April 2018 showing several armoured vehicles and a recently built-up structure. These vehicles and structure were not present before Turkish forces and armed groups gained control of Afrin on 18 March 2018.
“Under international humanitarian law, and particularly in situations of occupation, schools benefit from special protection and the education of children must be provided for. We urge Turkey to take all necessary measures to ensure that children are able to return to school and that the university is promptly rehabilitated and reopened as soon as possible”, said Lynn Maalouf.
Violations by the Syrian government and YPG
Following the offensive in January 2018, thousands of people fled to the nearby al-Shahba region. At least 140,000 people are now living in camps or damaged houses without proper access to services, especially medical care. The injured and chronically ill have to wait for government permission to be allowed access into Aleppo city, the nearest place where they can receive adequate medical care.
The Syrian government has also prevented any movement from the al-Shahba region to other parts of Syria that enjoy better living conditions. This has forced many people struggling to survive to pay large amounts of money to smugglers to counter these movement restrictions.
Furthermore, the YPG has blocked the roads from the al-Shahba region to Afrin, deliberately preventing displaced people from returning to their homes. Since the end of the military operation in March, hundreds have returned to Afrin after walking through a long and arduous mountain route.
A woman who returned to Afrin in early April told Amnesty International: “My aunt, who is 60 years old and suffered from a severe type of diabetes and other health conditions, died on the way back to Afrin from severe dehydration. The YPG didn’t let us take our cars through the official road so we walked for around five hours. She ran out of water halfway through. Her daughter went to find a spring to get her water but she didn’t make it back on time.”
According to several people, including members of the Kurdish Red Crescent, the Syrian government has restricted the medical evacuation of sick and wounded civilians from the al-Shahba region to Aleppo. The Kurdish Red Crescent and medical staff told Amnesty International that there is only one hospital and two clinics providing basic medical care and medicine in the al-Shahba region. They said that they lack both the medical expertise and equipment to perform surgeries or treat chronic diseases.
At the time of writing, around 300 people suffering from chronic diseases and serious injuries had been waiting for their medical evacuation to be approved by the Syrian government. Since mid-March, only 50 people have been allowed to travel to the national hospital in Aleppo for treatment.
“The Syrian government and YPG are exacerbating the suffering of people who have been displaced from Afrin, by trapping them in the al-Shahba region for no apparent reason and depriving them of adequate access to education, food and medical care. People, especially the sick and the injured, should be allowed immediate safe passage to wherever they wish to go,” said Lynn Maalouf.
“We are calling on Syria and the YPG to respect the freedom of movement of civilians, and to facilitate the safe and voluntary return of the displaced. Syrian authorities must expedite the medical evacuation of all sick and wounded who cannot receive adequate treatment in the al-Shahba region.”
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By Davide Grasso
Şehîd Şahîn Qereçox, known as Waka to his many friends, was sadly martyred in the fight against Daesh in Hajin on 7th October. He had been serving in the YPG, fighting for the revolution in Rojava for 4 months. For as long as I’d known him he was a loving comrade and a true revolutionary. I’m still struggling to find the words to describe him – he was so thoughtful and creative he defied simple generalisation. Whatever I write will merely scratch the surface of what he meant to me and so many people.
I will never forget his brave actions and efforts fighting for a world he knew was possible. One free from oppression, patriarchy and ecocide where people live cooperatively in the spirit of mutual aid instead of being made atomised and afraid by capitalism. He was always willing to risk repression or police violence defending what he believed in. In Hambacher Forest, Germany, he never hesitated putting himself in harm’s way to stop the exploitation and destruction of the earth. In Pont Valley, England, his creativity and hard work put fire in a campaign to defend communities and wildlife from opencast coal mining. Şahîn’s resourcefulness made him a valuable member of every community he was in. He was often hard at work building structures, cooking and just making the whole space more welcoming for everyone to enjoy themselves. He always brought his charming wit to every conversation and you could learn a lot from what he had to say.
His temperament was never aggressive, nor was he keen on physical confrontation and initially it was a surprise to hear he wanted to fight with the YPG. But actually, thinking about his many other brave exploits, it shouldn’t at all have been a surprise that he would fight for what he believed in this way. His unwavering courage and self-discipline without falling into macho behaviours is one of the many things for which I admired him.
[9/10 12:51] Botan Siria: This was one of the things that made him a true revolutionary – he knew a revolution isn’t just something you make or build, it’s something you do and it’s a part of who you are. Everything he did was very consciously and unapologetically political. He never shied away from criticising his own behaviour or that of his comrades. He wanted to make the most of every day of his life and any spare moment was spent learning a language, training, reading and sharing new ideas. A week or so before he died he was made co-commander of the YPG International Tabur and he was steadfastedly motivated in training not only everyone’s physical condition, but also building the revolutionary culture in the unit.
One treasured memory I have of him before he came to Rojava was when we were hitchhiking together in Europe. I remember no matter who gave us a lift he would immediately engage with them in conversation as if they were an old friend. He was always keen to talk about his ideas and never felt the need to be dishonest about his beliefs. His disarming friendliness and honesty left everyone we encountered on that journey fond of him, even if they had met him all too briefly.
I would like to send this message in memory of a true heval. A land defender, hunt saboteur, anarchist, expert hitchhiker & dumpster diver, revolutionary, friend, and a beautiful comrade. I only regret I didn’t tell him all this to his face, but the fight for freedom goes on and I will do so in his memory, inspired by everything he did and everything he taught me.
Şehîd namirin.”
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The battle of Idlib Province in Syria is decisive and crucial for the future of Rojava
By: Zaher Baher
05 Sep 2018
“We are at the final stage of solving the crisis in Syria and liberating whole territory from terrorism”, stated Walid al-Moualem, Syria’s foreign minister when he met Sergei Lavrov, his Russian counterpart, in Moscow.
The Assad Regime and its allies are preparing themselves for the upcoming battle for Idlib. The military launch might start this month, September, or the beginning of October. The war will likely bring victory to Assad and catastrophe to the 2 million citizens of Idlib where 1.6 million are already in need of humanitarian aid.
Idlib, near Aleppo, Hama and Homs, is a stronghold of over 60,000 anti-regime rebels and over 10,000 jihadists. To justify attacking Idlib, Assad often claims the province is full of terrorists.
Although the battle of Idlib looks rather small with any parties like the US, Russia, Turkey and Assad and their other allies’ involvement directly or indirectly, it will, no doubt, be a big battle. Each of these parties has their own stake in Idlib and the region. Assad is trying to control the whole country by defeating opposition rebels and terrorist groups. He also wants an open hand over the Kurdish in Rojava either to suppress or negotiate with them on his own terms and conditions. Turkey, which has supported anti-Assad forces and terrorist groups throughout the war for many reasons, has its own interests too. The US and Russia have been the major powers in the region and are arch enemies. Their intervention and involvement in Syria only serves their own interests economically, politically and financially and protects the power of their friends in the region.
As for Rojava’s situation, its future within the Idlib battle scenario is quite complicated. In my opinion, Rojava’s position has been weak since Jul 2015 when Erdogan launched a brutal attack on the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) forcing them to become involved in war. On the other hand, the Democratic Union Party (PYD) has been aligned with the US in the war against Islamic State (IS), and has committed many deadly mistakes mentioned in my previous article. Please see the link below:
http://www.anarkismo.net/article/30915?search_text=Zaher+Baher
The battle of Idlib will happen sooner or later. It will be decisive and crucial for the major powers and their allies in the region and also for Rojava. At the moment, US opposes the attack because it would lead to a “humanitarian catastrophe “. The White House warned on Tuesday 04/09 that the US and its allies would respond “swiftly and appropriately” if Assad used chemical weapons. The question here is why the US and its allies were not concerned about a “humanitarian catastrophe” when Turkey invaded Afrin and massacred hundreds of innocent people? In Idlib,the US is probably concerned with defeating the terrorist groups rather than innocent people because they want the game to last longer to achieve completely what they planned in the first place.
Rojava and its self-rule administration and the SDF cannot be ignored during the attack on Idlib and after the battle as well. It cannot be left as it is. The Rojava question and its future must be resolved either way. Rojava is facing many possible scenarios. If Assad prevails in this battle, as commonly predicted, the position of the Kurdish in Rojava will be weaker. Assad will be in a very strong position, securing his hold on power for a while. In this situation, he can impose his terms and conditions on the PYD and SDF while they are in a weak position. There is also the possibility of the SDF joining Assad’s forces for the battle of Idlib while the PYD is negotiating with the regime. As we can see, the PYD and SDF are in a very complicated situation. The SDF may join Assad’s forces against the rebels; an action which is opposed to US interests. In this circumstances the PYD and SDF might be abandoned by the US which, in the near future, may encourage a Turkish attack on Rojava or, at least, Turkey may try to occupy the towns on its border currently under control of the SDF.
If Assad fails to defeat the rebels in Idlib, it won’t be in the interest of Rojava either, because Assad’s defeat will also be a Turkish victory who will then be in a better position to attack Rojava as happened to Afrin.
However, whatever the outcome of Idlib’s battle, it will be critical for Rojava as its future is tied to the battles between the forces mentioned above. The situation may become so complicated in Rojava that it will become difficult for the Kurdish to maintain their principal aim of Democratic Confederalism.
What keeps Rojava alive is the continuing war with Isis and other terrorist groups and, also, the economic embargo imposed by regional powers. Saying this does not mean that Rojava’s movement will collapse. In my opinion, the Kurdish have proved themselves and resolved many questions positively so they cannot be ignored or marginalized by any sides of the major powers and Assad’s regime I believe that, in the end, there might be some compromise between the US and Russia over Syria and its regime. The power struggle between them and their allies to reach their own aims forces Assad, or a future government in Syria, to offer cultural autonomy and some cultural rights. These rights would be far short of building Democratic Confederalism.
Zaherbaher.com
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KCK STATEMENT ON MARTYRDOM OF ZEKI SHENGALI
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Kurdish leader reveals details of first meeting with Syrian government
QAMISHLO (Kurdistan 24) – The former co-chair of the Democratic Union Party (PYD), the ruling party in Syrian Kurdistan (Rojava), on Sunday revealed several details related to the latest official meeting of the Kurdish-run self-administration delegation with Syrian government officials in Damascus.
In an exclusive interview with Kurdistan 24, Salih Muslim said the meeting with government officials might be followed by another series of meetings to extend talks and include political and military issues.
FIRST OFFICIAL MEETING
Muslim said negotiations in Damascus began following an official invitation by the government.
“The meeting with government officials was to get to know each other and establish confidence, develop reciprocal relations,” he said.
He added that subsequent meetings could help chart a roadmap for Syria’s future and form committees to operate across the country.
“The atmosphere of the first meeting was positive and promising, as they accepted to discuss the notion of a decentralized system,” Muslim noted.
Regarding the committees, Muslim said they would be formed to address the delivery of public services first, before political and military concerns.
“The committees will be linked to central authorities in the region, but not to the government in Damascus. The government will have their own committees,” he said.
Regarding reports that northern and eastern regions would be handed over to the Syrian government, Muslim assured the Syrian Democratic Council (SDC) does not have the authority to discuss such matters without referring to the local councils.
SYRIAN GOVERNMENT THREATS
Answering a question on recent Syrian regime threats against the Kurdish administration, Muslim said, “The Syrian regime has always thought it could control the situation by force, like Ghouta and Daraa, but for our region, things are different.”
Muslim said those who attended the meeting on the government side were “top officials.”
“If there are conditions, we are ready to discuss them, but when it comes to threats, of course, this is unacceptable; if we want to find a solution for the whole country, it cannot be discussed under threats,” he further asserted.
TALKS OR NEGOTIATIONS?
Muslim said the initial meeting was just preliminary and introductory talks, but if it comes to legitimate negotiations, a third party should attend.
“We have informed international powers to guarantee a third party is present during any negotiations.”
US STANCE
Regarding any role the US might have played in talks taking place with the government, Muslim said the Kurdish self-administration did not wait for permission from international powers to do so, instead simply informing them.
“We informed all relevant international powers that we were going to meet government officials. It was our decision to accept the government’s invitation, and it’s our responsibility to seek solutions to the crisis,” he said.
“We accepted the invitation to talks with the government because we do believe dialogue is the optimal means to start recovering from the crisis,” Muslim affirmed.
Just as with the Americans, Muslim further added, no other international player expressed reservations about the talks.
“International powers know political decisions are taken by our administration, not by any other party or force, and this is why they will have a positive stance toward our decision,” he stated.
IDLIB OPERATION
On military operations against Turkish-backed militants in Idlib and Afrin, Muslim stressed that “wherever there are terrorists, we ready to fight them, as we fought them in Serikani, Raqqa, and many other parts of Syria.”
He said militant groups in Idlib are not different from those in Afrin.
“Fighting in Idlib or Afrin is our duty and responsibility, and when we fight in Idlib, it will be our decision as we are not tools in the hands of others,” he said.
US-RUSSIAN AGREEMENT
Commenting on the effect of any agreement between the US and Russia on their respective allies in Syria, Muslim said it would not be easy to implement on the ground.
“It’s difficult for the regime, backed by Russia, to change its mind as it still thinks it can win everywhere by force. So, even if the Russians come to an agreement with the Americans, forces on the ground may not change their stances,” he said.
Muslim further commented that Syria could never be as it was before the civil war and that the regime should take that “into consideration.”
“If the regime accepts our vision and project of a decentralized system, and accepts all groups and factions, then our views will be more aligned, and we may actually reach a solution,” he said.
Whether the Syrian regime can take the country’s north by force, Muslim said, “We always say we prefer dialogue, but if the government resorts to violence, we are ready to fight for ourselves and protect our territories.”
KURDISH INTERNAL PROBLEMS
About the Syrian Kurdish National Council (ENKS) which is considered the opposition to the PYD-led administration, Muslim confirmed the door is open for any party to join the self-administration.
ENKS, a part of the Turkey-based Syrian Arab opposition, has been engaged in political disputes with the PYD-led administration of Syria’s Kurdish-held northern areas known as Rojava.
“We accept all forces on the ground to participate in finding a solution, and our delegation to Damascus contained not only Kurds but other factions as well, including Arabs and Syriacs,” he said.
NEW SYRIAN CONSTITUTION
Muslim cautioned that while there are Kurds in government and opposition delegations, and in the committees working on the drafting of a new constitution, whether in Geneva or Sochi, none of the Kurdish members represent the Kurds as an entire group.
“There should be no Kurdish member claiming to represent the Kurds as a whole, and any decision that comes from them would not bind us as well,” he said.
Editing by Nadia Riva
(Interview conducted by Kurdistan 24 office in Qamishlo and Kurdistan 24 Presenter Jamal Batun in Erbil
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Syrian Democratic Council ready for ‘unconditional talks’ with Assad regime
By Rudaw 10/6/2018
ERBIL, Kurdistan Region – The Syrian Democratic Council (SDC), a Kurdish-Arab alliance and political wing of the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), announced on Sunday it is ready for peace talks with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s regime.
In a statement, the SDC said it wants to resolve the deadly conflict in Syria, now in its eight year, through dialogue and would not “hesitate to agree to unconditional talks” with the Syrian government, as reported by AFP.
Hekmat Habib, head of the SDC, told AFP both the council and the SDF “are serious about opening a door to dialogue” with the Syrian regime.
“With the SDF’s control of 30 percent of Syria, and the regime’s control of swathes of the country, these are the only two forces who can sit at the negotiating table and formulate a solution to the Syrian crisis,” he said.
Kurdish authorities hope to avoid military confrontation and attempt a rapprochement with the Syrian regime.
In an interview with the Kremlin-backed Russia Today (RT) network last month, President Assad said the SDF is “the only problem left in Syria” and threatened to use force if negotiations over Syrian territory proved unsuccessful.
Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Muallem said the regime is holding informal talks with the Kurds, but negotiations have not officially started. Details have not been shared by either side.
The conflict in Syria began after mass protests in March 2011 escalated into a full scale civil war between pro-Syrian regime forces and rebel factions.
The rise of ISIS across Iraq and Syria in 2014 further complicated the situation, causing regional and global powers to be drawn into the conflict.
Kurds in Syria’s northern provinces carved out their own autonomous region of Rojava. They have generally maintained an uneasy truce with Assad over the course of the war.
The US-led anti-ISIS coalition has been working with the SDF to oust the terror group.
Turkey has been a main backer of opposition groups trying to remove Assad from power, while Russia and Iran have been among his main allies.
However, Turkey, Iran and Russia have teamed up to help mediate a peace settlement to end the conflict.
They have failed to negotiate a lasting ceasefire through several rounds of peace talks in the Kazakh capital of Astana, which officially began in December 2016. United Nations-led talks in Geneva have also failed to end the conflict.
SDC chief Habib told AFP all non-Syrian military forces should leave the war-torn country, including roughly 2,000 US troops.
“We are looking forward, in the next phase, to the departure of all military forces from Syria and the return to Syrian-Syrian dialogue,” he added.
More than half a million people have been killed over the course of the war, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. Around half of all Syrians have been displaced at one time or another, sparking the worst refugee crisis since World War II.
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UN report details large-scale human rights abuses in Afrin under Turkish military control
The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) in a monthly report for June details large-scale human rights abuses in areas under Turkish military control, specifically Syria’s Afrin province, which was wrested from the Kurdish People’s Protection Units (YPG) by the Turkish military in March.
OHCHR has called on the Turkish government to ensure that rebels under the umbrella of Turkey’s ally the Free Syria Army (FSA) adhere to international humanitarian law, Wladimir van Wilgenburg writes in a report for Kurdistan 24.
“Civilians now living in areas under the control of Turkish forces and affiliated armed groups continue to face hardships, which in some instances may amount to violations of international humanitarian law and violations or abuses of international human rights law,” the OHCHR report said.
Turkish-backed FSA forces and the Turkish army took vast territory in northern Syria during Operation Euphrates Shield (August 2016-March 2017) and Operation Olive Branch (January-March 2018) to prevent the Syrian Kurds from creating an autonomous region.
As a result of these operations and agreements with Russia and Syria, Turkey now controls a large contiguous area from Jarabulus to Idlib. According to the report, the security situation under Turkish-backed rebel control remains volatile, with internal fighting among Turkish-backed groups.
“Sources in Afrin and other areas in northern Aleppo Governorate report to OHCHR that there are high levels of violent crime,” the report says. “With civilians falling victim to robberies, harassment, abductions, and murder. OHCHR continues to receive allegations of discrimination against civilians perceived to hold sympathies or affiliations to Kurdish forces.”
“OHCHR has received reports of lawlessness and rampant criminality committed by armed groups in areas under the control of Turkish forces and armed groups operating under their control in northern Syria,” the report adds.
“Civilians have informed OHCHR that a number of members of armed opposition groups operating in the area are former well-known local criminals, smugglers, or drug dealers.”
Furthermore, OHCHR confirms reports that large-scale looting of private property from houses and shops along with government and military facilities, and seizures of private real estate by fighters from various Turkish-affiliated armed groups took place.
“Large-scale looting is believed to have taken place immediately after each area was taken, although reports continue to be received that looting – particularly of vehicles and agricultural equipment – continues on a daily basis,” the report added.
According to the report, a substantial amount of looted property is believed to have been sold in marketplaces in Azaz, despite claims that the local “police” in Azaz have detained many individuals accused of responsibility for the looting.
Furthermore, the report details the abduction of civilians, which information indicates is often motivated by ransom. “OHCHR has documented at least 11 cases in which civilians including women and children were abducted, some of them later released after paying ransoms ranging between USD 1,000 to 3,000, while the whereabouts of others remain unknown,” the report said.
The report confirms that thousands of fighters, their family members and civilians displaced and evacuated from the Eastern Ghouta, rural Homs, and Hama governorates are now occupying homes of mostly Kurdish civilians who fled violence in Afrin in February and March.
“Many civilians seeking to return to their homes have found them occupied by these fighters and their families, who have refused to vacate them and return them to their rightful owners,” the report said.
OHCHR is concerned that permitting ethnic Arabs to occupy the houses of Kurds who have fled effectively prevents the Kurds from returning to their homes and may be an attempt to change the ethnic composition of the area permanently.
Furthermore, there are reports that civilian property is being confiscated under the pretext that the person had in some way been affiliated with Kurdish forces.
OHCHR also continues to receive complaints that civilians, including women, are taken from their homes or detained at checkpoints, based on accusations of being affiliated to Kurdish forces.
“The whereabouts of a large number of such civilians remain unknown,” the report states.
“As a matter of priority, OHCHR urges the Republic of Turkey to ensure that all armed groups over which it exercises control in Afrin and other areas of Syria strictly adhere to their obligations under international humanitarian law. Furthermore, OHCHR urges all parties to strictly adhere to all applicable rules of IHL in relation to the protection of civilians.”
The report also calls on Turkey and Turkish-backed rebels to ensure that displaced persons are facilitated in returning to their homes in dignity and safety in full compliance with humanitarian principles.
Meanwhile, the Turkish military on Sunday completed its 11th round of patrolling in the northern Syrian city of Manbij as part of a deal with the US to rid the area of the YPG/PKK. In a message posted on its official Twitter account, the Turkish General Staff said both countries’ forces conducted separate coordinated patrols in the area between the Operation Euphrates Shield region and Manbij.
The first patrols by Turkish and US troops in the region began on June 18. The Manbij deal between Turkey and the US focuses on the withdrawal of the PKK-affiliated YPG from the city in order to stabilize the region. Should the Manbij model prove to be a success, Turkey will push for a similar arrangement in eastern Syria.
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The ‘Turkification’ policy in Northern Syria goes on
Turkey wants to make its presence a permanent reality in Afrin and the other zones it occupied in Northern Syria.
The Turkish state has been seeking to establish a buffer zone in Northern Syria since the beginning of the Syrian war. The presence of Turkmens in Shehba constitutes the basis for this plan.
The Turkish state has been active in the region through operation “Euphrates Shield” and on 24 August 2014 it has received Jarablus from DAESH mercenaries.
After the occupation of Jarablus, the Turkish state has provided extensive military support to DAESH mercenaries to prevent the SDF (the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces) forces from liberating Raqqa.
The Turkish state occupied centers such as Jarablus, al-Bab, Azaz and Cobanbey in cooperation with mercenaries belonging to DAESH and al-Nusra while maintaining the policy of Syrian regime forces in this region.
The Turkish state forced the Kurdish and Arab peoples in the region to migrate towards eastern Euphrates and Aleppo.
After the Turkish state forced the Kurdish and Arab families in the region to migrate, Turkmens from different regions of Iraq and Syria began to settle in the now semi-empty Kurdish and Arab cities. The Turkish state carried out massacres and killed thousands of people as well as seizing their goods and houses.
The Turkish state quickly brought these cities and areas under its control and implemented new policies aimed at making its presence permanent.
The Turkish state hanged photographs of the soldiers killed in the conflict at the entrance of the cities, while posters of Turkish President, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, and Turkish flags were hanged in all the institutions in the cities.
The city of Afrin was brutally assaulted by the Turkish regime. Attacks extended to Shehba Canton as well. The Turkish state established stations in Idlib appointing “responsible” officials and it also put up many observation points in the region under the pretext of being a “war zone”.
Turkish telephone companies quickly started to establish network stations in the region. Turkcell company, which set up network poles in many areas of Shehba, has now begun to set up network poles in Idlib and Afrin.
The Turkish state is rapidly implementing its policies of Turkification in the cities it has occupied.
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SDF: 31 villages liberated in Operation Cizire Storm
SDF General Command has issued a statement on the Operation Cizire Storm and said, “As part of the ongoing operation from two sides, Shaddadi and Hawl, an area of 330 square kilometers including 31 villages have been liberated.”
Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) General Command issued a written statement on the actions carried out as part of the Operation Cizire Storm against ISIS gangs between June 24 and July 5.
SDF Press Center announced that after the Dashisha town to the south of Hesekê was liberated as part of phase two of the Cizire Storm, SDF forces carried out a series of actions against gangs between June 24 and July 5, 2018 and continued:
“As part of the ongoing operation from two sides, Shaddadi and Hawl, an area of 330 square kilometers including 31 villages has been liberated.The villages of Tiwêmiyê, Se’ida, Soyan, Hewîca, Reyhaniyê, El-Seracî, Xedîr Ebdella, Elmedîna, Wadî Elşok, Celxem, Xêra xerbî, Zixîr, Eldebça, Cilêb Neda, Xêra şerqî, Seqar, Wadî Ebû Hemdî, Wadî Elşeca, Sehayêm, Kulêb Foqanî, Elsîha, Ebû Fas, Riwêh, Xezîm, Mişêrfa, Kulêb Tehtanî, Abar Elebid, Elecraş, Elecrûş and Kelka, as well as dozens of subdistricts, have been liberated and hundreds of civilians have been rescued.
Our forces have entered clashes with ISIS mercenaries at least 4 times using heavy, medium and lightweight weapons.
On Thursday, there were intense clashes between our forces in both fronts and ISIS gangs. The gangs’ attempts to stop the advance of our forces failed, 4 gang members were killed and a further 8 were captured alive.
Our forces have confiscated large amounts of weapons and ammunition. The confiscated weapons and ammunition are as follows: 1 radio, 3 Kalashnikovs, 1 M60, 1 RPG, several hand grenades and one mortar shell.
In clashes, one of our fighters was martyred and three were wounded.
International Coalition aircrafts carried out 4 bombings against ISIS bases, killing 8 gang members and destroying 2 vehicles and 1 motorcycle. An ISIS base was also completely demolished.”
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Back to society‘s roots: witnessing the battle for history at Rojava`s archaeological sites
Rojava is home to many of the oldest sites of human society, culture and history, dating back 5000 years or more. Members of the Internationalist Commune, together with archaeology students from Rojava’s Tevgera Xwendekaren Demokratik (TXD, or Democratic Students’ Movement), recently visited several of these ancient sites as part of a joint education. We saw how remnants of over settlements, cities and temple complexes have stood the test of time, hidden beneath the earth.
But since the beginning of the 20th century, excavations have taken place. Many of the objects that have come to light, such as the Pergamon Altar, are since this time in the hands of the Western colonial powers. The objects are now displayed far away from their original location and completely ripped out of their context in the museums of Europe.
“It is an essential part of colonialism that the colonized peoples are deprived of the history which forms a vital part of their identity. To this day, this form of oppression and exploitation continues.”
Moreover, the fascist Turkish state deliberately bombed and destroyed ancient monuments and religious sites – including UNESCO world heritage sites dating back 3000 years – during their violent onslaught on Afrin. They sought to obliterate the history of religious diversity in the region, and wipe out Kurdish society’s ancient connection to the land.
Daesh likewise plundered ancient sites before their defeat by Rojava’s democratic forces, with many of the treasures they stole ending up for sale in Western auction houses.
It is an essential part of colonialism that the colonized peoples are deprived of the history which forms a vital part of their identity. To this day, this form of oppression and exploitation continues.
Before and during these excursions, there were seminars on archaeological and historical topics, along with discussions on jineologi, the history of Kurdistan and the principles of the revolutionary movement here. The aim of the education was to give as broad as possible an overview about the history of societies, and to show how this history lives on to this day and is reflected in the social structures of the present.
We were studying alongside Kurdish and Arabic students, some of whom were well-connected to the revolutionary movement but some of whom were hearing these revolutionary analyses of history for the first time. For many of us this was our first time in Kurdish society, and studying in Kurmanci for a week was a big challenge – but also a chance to rapidly improve our language skills, and see the movement’s ideology in action among the local youth.
For our first trip we visited the ancient community of Til Bede near Heseke. Many remains of temples and houses were dug up and reconstructed there, on foundations from about 3000 BC. During this time about 20,000 people lived there. It was very impressive to see this old place full with history and to walk through the streets and houses, seeing how the holy quarters were kept divided from the general population as social hierarchies emerged in this nascent society.
European archaeologists fled the site with the outbreak of the Syrian Civil War, and the earthworks were now sadly untended and full of trash. When we do not care for ecology, or are forced to abandon this priority by war, we begin to lose touch with our history.
The next day we visited another ancient site, dating back to the Assyrian civilisation. Remains of walls dating back thousands of years are located directly next to a reservoir, half-buried next to an inconspicuous hill. There are also some caves, ancient earthworks repurposed by Daesh to use for shelter against airstrikes.
There are potsherds and bones scattered all over the place, which are obviously very old, even dating from the beginnings of these settlements several thousands of years ago. A friend found – to the surprise of all and entirely by chance – a stone plate marked with cuneiform. The teacher estimated it was 3000 years old, yet it was lying there there just like that.
The official excavations have not started there yet and it will probably take a long time for this to happen. Our teacher told us that the reservoir was deliberately located there by the Assad regime, destroying many other architectural links to the past which now lie decomposing below its dirty waters. Meanwhile Daesh can plunder the sites with impunity, in effective collusion with Western states who turn a blind eye to the sale of looted goods.
We made a final visit to Girê Moza. This place has been excavated very widely and many of the remains of temple complexes have been uncovered and partly reconstructed. Here, we saw how the proto-state’s physical structure came to mirror repressive social hierarchies at this time in human history, with only the king granted access to a holy place where he could commune with his ancestors.
This reflects Abdullah Öcalan’s work on archaeology, which we studied in the classroom in between trips. As humans moved into larger settlements, they left behind the natural society in which they lived in egalitarian, decentralised groups without patriarchal structures.
With the accumulation of wealth in the hands of powerful men came oppression, sexist domination, and the abuse of religion to keep the general population under the dominion of the elite. Having met these ideas in education, we could see them in reality on the land before us.
“The enemies of the revolution are working to destroy both the present and the past.”
As ANF found in their recent report on Rojava’s archaeological heritage, “Northern Syria is the direct cultural and geographical continuation of cultures on the historic hill of Göbekli Tepe and Newala Çori, and has many places of immense historical significance…. The history of the Neolithic, in particular, acquired a new meaning for society through the revolution, which it understands as part of its essence.“
The enemies of the revolution are working to destroy both the present and the past, demolishing and denying Rojava‘s links to millennia of human struggle. On our travels around Rojava we saw clearly that the two cannot be separated. By defending archaeology, we are defending our history, our land – and our future.
– Heval Şevger
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KCK: Election results are illegitimate
KCK Executive Council Co-Presidency issued a written statement on the outcome of the June 24 elections and said Erdoğan’s election and the fascist bloc achieving parliamentary majority can’t be considered legitimate.
The written statement issued by the KCK said the AKP-MHP fascist alliance usurped the presidency and took parliamentary majority with all kinds of tricks and fraud in the elections. The statement added: “This is not a success, this is not getting stronger.” KCK pointed out that the fascist alliance was only able to remain in power through state resources and oppression. KCK stated that a new era of oppression against forces of democracy is around the corner and stressed that democracy can only be achieved through struggle. KCK also commended the Kurdish people and the forces of democracy who all came together around the HDP and made the party overcome the election threshold despite all the pressure.
THERE MUST BE A STANCE AGAINST THE ILLEGITIMATE FASCIST GOVERNMENT
The KCK statement is as follows:
“Elections were held under the State of Emergency, in conditions of pressure and inequality, with much fraud. These elections held to legitimize the AKP-MHP fascist government’s anti-democracy and anti-Kurdish policies used every trick, pressure and method to achieve that end. The conditions the elections were held under, the pressure during the election process and interventions with the ballots illegitimize these elections. The AKP-MHP fascit government, who don’t want to step down through elections and consider winning the elections to be a matter of independence for Turkey, have resorted to all kinds of tricks and pressure to remain in power. In this sense, neither the presidential election nor the fascist alliance taking parliamentary majority cannot be considered legitimate. Forces of democracy must not consider these results legitimate, they must take a stance against this illegitimate fascist government and make their struggle permanent.
HDP’S SUCCESS
In these elections, the biggest goal for the AKP-MHP fascism, along with their lesser goals, was to push the HDP below the election threshold. But all the tricks and the pressure was not enough to do that, as the Kurdish people and the peoples of Turkey embraced the HDP. For that, we commend the Kurdish people and the forces of democracy who gathered around the HDP.
THE AKP-MHP ALLIANCE ONLY REMAINS IN POWER THROUGH STATE RESOURCES AND OPPRESSION
The AKP-MHP fascist alliance usurping the presidency and taking the parliamentary majority through all kinds of tricks and fraud must not be seen as a success, or them gaining strength. In truth, the peoples of Turkey have hown that they don’t want to be under the rule of this fascist government. They can only remain in power through state resoures and oppression. If not for these, it is not possible for this government, who pit the peoples of Turkey against each other and create an unhappy social spirit where everybody feuds with their neighbors and coworkers, would never be accepted by the peoples. When the people fight, they won’t be able to stand against the will of the peoples of Turkey. When forces of democracy fight against this fascist government, the government won’t live long.
THE AKP-MHP ALLIANCE HAS LOST SOCIETAL SUPPORT IN TURKEY
AKP and MHP are not political parties that can be the governing power in a society. They are only fascist and genocidal forces that aim for government through animosity against the Kurdish people, all peoples and all diversity. No understanding of governance that riles up chauvinism in society through animosity against Kurds and different social groups and then gathering strength or votes through that chauvinism is acceptable in terms of morality or societal values. No society or country deserves to be ruled by such parties.
The AKP-MHP alliance has lost societal support in Turkey. As such, when they understood that they would lose in the election, like all fascist governments they have chosen to rile up chauvinism. Although there is no activity against Qandil but routine air strikes, they lied and said they were conducting a ground operation, that they were close to Qandil to trick society. As if that wasn’t enough, they aimed to increase their votes with the lie that they hit 35 PKK-KCK administrators. The rule of these political parties that tell these lies that don’t comply with any ethics and increase votes through such means should not be seen as legitimate and should not be accepted.
A NEW PERIOD OF OPPRESSION AGAINST FORCES OF DEMOCRACY
The AKP-MHP fascist alliance is an alliance of war against the Kurdish people and the forces of democracy. In this sense, they will claim their policies are approved and continue with the wars and attacks. As they continue their aggression against the Kurdish people’s struggle for freedom, they will increase oppression to make the forces of deomcracy and democrats in Turkey surrender. They will try to make the whole society and all the forces of democracy complicit in their policies of war. In this sense, they will launch a new period of oppression against forces of democracy.
DEMOCRACY CAN ONLY COME THROUGH STRUGGLE
The Kurdish people and the forces of democracy should know that democracy can come to Turkey only through struggle against this fascist government. There is no other way but strugle to resolve all issues Turkey has within democracy. It is now understood that the AKP-MHP alliance won’t step down through elections. Because this is not governing a society. This is a government of war that aims to crush the forces of democracy. And against such a government, it is high time to organize and develop the struggle without a day’s delay. In this sense, it is important for all the forces of democracy in Turkey come together in the widest possible alliance for democracy. On this basis, the widest alliance for democracy must fight the AKP-MHP fascist government in all possible areas.
KURDISH FREEDOM MOVEMENT WILL FIGHT EVERYWHERE
The AKP-MHP fascist alliance has declared that they will continue their genocidal attacks against Kurds everywhere following the June 24 elections. Kurdish youth must respond to this by rushing to the areas of the freedom struggle and to raise the struggle against fascism anywhere they are.
We as the Kurdish Freedom Movement will fight this fascist government that is against democracy and peoples everywhere. Our struggle will continue with a strong will and great resolve until this fascist government is defeated and our peoples are free. This fascist government doesn’t have long to live. Our people’s struggle for freedom and democracy will bring the end of this fascist government.”
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Stop the Turkish Invasion of South Kurdistan (Iraqi Kurdistan)
Kurdistan National Kongress (KNK) Statement:
The Kurds in Iraq and Syria have been engaged in an epic battle against the Islamic State (ISIS) in Iraq and Syria, an organisation that stands in opposition not only to the Kurds, but also to the region as a whole, in its attempts to create a Salafist system. This attempt poses an immense threat to humanitarian values, beliefs and democratic norms. In the war against this barbaric gang the Kurds have played a deeply significant role, opening the path for their final defeat. Today, ISIS is losing ground and their capacity to threaten the West, especially the EU countries, has been significantly reduced.
However, the AKP government, which has been complicit with ISIS in its barbaric attacks, is not satisfied and having realised that it could not neutralise the Kurdish Freedom Movement with ISIS, has begun a more direct attack. It now aims to destroy all the gains and progressive developments made by the Kurds in both the South and West of Kurdistan.
The Turkish state’s illegal bombing and invasion of Afrin in Northern Syria
The Turkish state has illegally bombed and invaded Afrin, a Kurdish-majority region which had been a peaceful oasis in a war-torn country, a site of refuge, and stronghold of the democratic confederal project. This criminal invasion has led to hundreds of deaths and a further wave of mass displacement. Most alarming are the indications of plans for full-scale ethnic cleansing of Kurds.
Turkey’s potential invasion of Iraqi Kurdish territory
There are increasing signs of an imminent full-scale invasion of Iraqi Kurdish territory, including the mountainous Qandil region of northern Iraq, in an attempt to further encircle and strangle the only place of freedom in the region. Turkish warplanes have carried out frequent bombing campaigns in the Kurdish areas ( Metina, Avasin, Zap, Basyan, Gare, Xakurk and Kandil) in Kurdistan- northern Iraq and have killed many civilians.
Representatives of the Kurdish people have repeatedly raised their fears and called upon all governments and international organisations (the UN, NATO, the EU and the Arab League) to prevent Turkey’s military border incursions and violations of Iraqi sovereignty.
As yet there has been no international response, and the state of Turkey is emboldened to make further incursions and to attempt to take control of the region by deploying additional troops and establishing new military bases ( in addition to the 18 bases already established) and intelligence outposts in the region. With the Turkish Gendarmerie engaging in military parades in the villages within the Sidekan district of the province of Diyana, region of Hewler (the capital of KRG) governorate, it is clear they are treating the occupied land as their own territory.
Break the silence against Turkey’s invasion of Kurdistan
We call on all relevant bodies (political parties, human rights organisations, trade unionists and activists) to stand with us and take action against this violation of international law, to unambiguously condemn this crime of aggression, and to demand that Turkey withdraws its troops from Kurdistan.
We call upon all governments and international organisations (the UN, NATO, the EU and the Arab League) as well as the world’s democratic peoples, to oppose this Turkish aggression.
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How a heroic Manchester man is bringing water to a war torn community in Syria
Daniel Burke is raising funds to build a well – and you can help
Daniel Burke is a man on a mission.
The 30 year-old from Wythenshawe has been fighting ISIS with the Kurdish militia in Syria for over seven months and is determined to continue to do so until the end.
Recently, however, he has been told he needs to take some time off for a while, to rest and regain his strength. So he has decided to focus more on civilian work.
He is hoping to raise £700 to help install a new water well in Nashowa, a small village in Syria.
Water supplies have now depleted in Nashowa, putting many men, women and children at severe risk, especially with the brutal summer approaching, when temperatures can hit over 50 degrees for days or even weeks.
“We need to hire the equipment to dig down, pipe up and supply the village with the water,” says Daniel.
“We will be using local businesses for supplies, so donations are injected back into the local community. We have a team of both local and international volunteers working for us.”
His initiative is dedicated to his best friend Oliver Hall, who died fighting ISIS in Raqqa last year.
“Ollie and I had the same mindset of defeating ISIS and then helping the people who have been deeply affected by their sickening crimes. We wanted to work in remote villages, where help is needed the most, but where aid cannot reach them due to safety reasons.”
Daniel joined the British Army as a paratrooper before being deployed to Helmand, Afghanistan in 2008. On his return he was diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder after an incident that also cost him his career in the army.
After getting help from the Kathe Locke Centre in Moss Side, he decided to focus on his career in the construction industry.
“I made a rather comfortable life for myself. I moved out into the countryside with my girlfriend and had a lovely house and a very good job. But my mind couldn’t rest knowing what was happening over there.”
Daniel had several contacts in the Middle East who were sending him pictures and stories which made him eager to want to help. He applied to volunteer in early 2015/16 but cancelled due to his family severely criticising his decision and his girlfriend persuading him to stay.
“They didn’t understand the whole situation, regardless how many times I told them. I was trying to lead a normal life, but with the attacks happening all over Europe and knowing all the pain they (ISIS) were inflicting all over the Middle East, I decided to start my application again in late 2016, near Christmas.”
The terror attacks in London and Manchester only made Daniel even more certain that enrolling was the right decision to make.
Daniel, who proudly wears an I Love Manchester badge on his uniform, has been sending us video updates, explained the unimaginably difficult situation he finds himself in.
In one video he says: “Last night was a freezing cold night. The position we’re in isn’t great because you can’t see if anyone sneaks in. Nearby where we are there was a suicide attack with a car bomb last night. Not sure how many people were killed there because a mine exploded.”
Despite the hunger, the cold and the loss Daniel’s tone is usually stubbornly positive. He talks about the camaraderie between those fighting in Syria and doesn’t seem to be startled any more by the sound of gunfire you can hear in the background.
“Most of the guys I live with are Arabs. We slept on the streets together, in the blistering cold and we fought together. It’s hard to communicate but we make it work though. It really is a band of brothers, because you rely on each other so much,” he says.
Another one of his videos shows the place he’s currently living in, together with his comrades. It’s a ramshackle compound where the whitewashed walls are covered with pictures of their fallen friends.
Daniel gets emotional when he mentions Ollie Hall. The last few months since his passing have been really hard, he says.
“He passed away in Raqqa after triggering an IED (a type of bomb) while trying to save two children who wandered into a building laced with IRDs (an improvised explosive device).
“He truly was a great friend and he died doing the job he came here to do: to save the civilians and help them in any way possible.
“We were both looking at going into the civilian section after the fight is over, to help rebuild this lovely country.”
When things get really hard, Daniel remembers why he is there and who he’s fighting for.
That’s why he likes spending time with civilians and has been doing work with a local charity trying to help Syrian children.
“As we were clearing through Abu Hammond (region South of Deir Ezzor) we could see families returning back to their houses, wearing normal clothing.
“Even the children started approaching us with smiles on their faces. The locals would bring out food to us and sit down and drink tea. It’s really good to see people returning back to normal life.
“There’s a lot of bad here but amongst the ashes, there’s a beautiful nation who really needs our help.”
Determined to end on a positive note, Daniel says ISIS are now cornered and that they are now making a move towards what they hope to be the last assault.
However he added they’re quite limited on ammunition and transport at the moment and that numbers of people on the ground have dropped quite significantly too.
“We’re on our way to Hajin now – one of the strongest ISIS points left, that’s where they reckon the fire’s going to be the worst. It’s has been nicknamed the mini Raqqa.”
Once the fight is over, Daniel hopes to work with a construction team to build a new hospital and a university for the local community.
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Orders from the MİT, murders from the Kiyam Movement
It has come to light that the MİT and ISIS are behind the Kiyam (“Mutiny”) Movement, which poses as an independent organization of Syrians.
There have been sabotages and assassinations against Raqqa Civilian Council and Manbij Military Council administrators in Northern Syria in the last three months.In the first assassination against Raqqa Civilian Council administrators in 2018, Council Administrator Lawyer IbrahimHalil was targeted in the Turkmen Hamam village of Gire Spî. Halil was heavily wounded in the attack on 11.01.2018. During the investigation process by the Rojava Security Forces on the assassination, one of the suspects was a former ISIS member Ismail Ahmet Necim. Necim himself is also from the Turkmen Hamam village, and was taken under surveillance on suspicion. After he was detained in a covert operation, he confessed to committing the assassination.
Necim stated that he was made to carry out the assassination by Huseyin Muhammed Salih from the Euphrates Shield Forces, and that he in turn had received his orders from Turkish intelligence.
Some time after Necim was arrested, in October 2017, a group called the Kiyam (“Mutiny”) Movement emerged in the north of Aleppo. The Kiyam Movement announced its founding with the claim that they would “fight against separatist groups”, and their murders were reminiscent of the counter-guerilla murders by the MİT during the ‘90s. They also published a video of the assassination on social media. The Kiyam Movement targeted administrators in the PYD, YPG, Manbij Military Council and Raqqa Civilian Council -like the Turkish state does- and carried out assassinations. However much they try to look like they are independent from Turkish intelligence and an organization formed by Syrians, Ismail Ahmet Necim’s confessions have confirmed that the organization was founded by the MİT.
One of the most important murders the MİT-made Kiyam Movement committed but did not claim was the murder of Ömer Alluş.
“THE INSTIGATORS WERE EUPHRATES SHIELD FORCES IN JARABLUS”
Confessions by Ismail Ahmed Necim (born 1991) are as follows:
“I went to Jarablus in 2017 to cross into Turkey. My goal was to go to Turkey and work. There I saw Huseyin Muhammed Salih, he was also from my village. I had also gone to school with him. I had seen him once afterwards when I was doing some business with my father. Other than that, we didn’t have a relationship. Years later, I saw him again in Jarablus for the first time. He was under the Euphrates Shield forces. I stayed there for ten days. I wanted to cross the border into Turkey but I couldn’t, so I went back to my village. Some 4-5 months after I went back to my village, I saw him there. He came to me one day before he killed that lawyer.
ORDERS FROM TURKISH INTELLIGENCE
He told me he came to Jarablus on business, and he would handle it and go back. I asked him what business he had. He said, ‘My business is killing people.’ Then he told me, ‘You are part of the Euphrates Shield Forces.’ I said I wasn’t, and he said, ‘It’s OK, don’t do anything, just be my lookout. I will give you $500.’
I asked him who we were doing this for. He said it was for Abu Azam, who is from the Euphrates Shield forces and does the job of the Turkish intelligence.
“HE TOLD ME I HAD TO KILL HIM TO LEARN”
The next day he came again. We went by the lawyer’s house on a motorbike. He said, ‘Go ahead, you kill him, so you will learn.’ He gave me the gun. ‘Put up the gun, and shoot when you see the lawyer,’ he said. He had done the full surveillance before, and told me the bathroom is away from the house, I could hide behind the bathroom and shoot when the lawyer came out. So I did. I fired 7 bullets when the lawyer came.
They told me there was a silencer on the gun and it had 7 bullets. After I shot him, we flung ourselves over the fence and took a complicated route with the bike out of there. He dropped me off at home. I asked him for the money. He said, ‘Come to my house tomorrow, I will both pay you and prepare you for a new job.’
“HE SAID HE WOULD COME FOR NEW JOBS”
I went to his house several times but I didn’t see him. 3 days later, I sent a message over WhatsApp and asked about the money. He said, ‘I will be back in 4 to 6 weeks, I both have other business there and I will be giving you your money.’ Then I sent a voice message over WhatsApp, but he didn’t respond. I waited for him for 1.5 months, and then I got caught.”
FOOTAGE FROM THE ASSASSINATION PUBLISHED
Ismail Necim was caught in a covert operation by the Rojava Security Forces and his capture was kept a secret. The counter-guerilla organization called the Kiyam Movement published footage from this assassination on March 7, i.e. after Necim was captured. The footage shows Ismail Ahmet Necim targeting Ibrahim Halil by the bathroom, like in his confession.
TRACES OF KIYAM IN THE MURDER OF ÖMER ALLUŞ
The comments of Huseyin Muhammed Salih, who is the instigator and supervisor in the murder mentioned in Ismail Ahmet Necim’s confessions and who claims to have received orders from a MİT officer, are also significant for the murder of Ömer Alluş on March 15, 2018.
Huseyin Muhammed Salih told Ismail Ahmet Necim that his business is killing people. Then he said he would return in 4 to 6 weeks. The murder of Ömer Alluş in his home coincides with these dates. He was also killed with a gun with a silencer.
The Kiyam Movement assumed the Ibrahim Halil assassination by publishing footage, but didn’t assume the murder of Ömer Alluş, who was a Kurdish administrator in the Raqqa Civilian Council in Gire Spî and was from the family Kurdish People’s Leader Abdullah Öcalan first visited in Rojava.
But the main agency of the Turkish state the Anadolu Agency announced that Alluş was killed in his home with a gun with a silencer, right after the incident happened and before the Rojava Security Forces issued a statement on how it was committed. The pool media also claimed that Alluş was “executed by the PKK” for “going against the PYD”.
With this murder, Ömer Alluş who played an imprtant role in the future of both Raqqa and Syria was neutralized in accordance with the goals of the Turkish state, and they attempted to pin the murder on the PYD and Northern Syrian officials.
As such, all assassinations and sabotages by the Kiyam Movement to date were committed in areas the Turkish state has on the agenda, and have coincided with their political and military goals.
ISIS-MİT PARTNERSHIP: THE KIYAM
The suspect in the Ibrahim Halil assassination Ismail Ahmet Necim is a former ISIS member. After Gire Spî was liberated, he crossed into Raqqa. According to his own account, he was a guard in an ISIS hospital. Necim fled Raqqa and surrendered to the YPG, and after he remained in prison for a while, and it became clear that he was not involved in armed attacks, he was released with a pardon.
Rojava Security Forces looked into the matter, and took Ismail Ahmed Necim under surveillance after the assassination as he is a former ISIS member. Then they determined that the individual in question still had a relationship with ISIS.
This piece of information provided by the security forces and the confessions of Ismail Ahmed Necim shows the relationship between the Turkish state gangs that call themselves the Euphrates Shield Forces, the MİT and ISIS, and that the counter-guerilla organization that calls itself the Kiyam Movement is also made up of ISIS, MİT and Euphrates Shield gang member
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To the press and the public !!
YPG General Command in Afrin | May 4, 2018
Within the scope the second phase of the Resistance of the Age, our forces have carried out effective actions against the invading Turkish army forces and terrorists, including those who were appointed by the Turkish intelligence agency (MIT) for special duties ın Afrin.
The terrorist named Jamal al-Zakhlool, who was responsible for organizing the placement of terrorists and their families brought to Afrin from various places in Syria, and who had been being followed by our forces, was killed in the organized action. (Second picture)
Al-Zakhlool who was forcing Afrin residents to flee their homes and was placing FSA terrorists and their families in the abandoned homes of Afrin people had two meetings with MIT officials earlier. Al-Zakhlool was also tasked with establishing internal security forces, civilian administration and courts in occupied Afrin.
One day before the action, Al-Zakhlool was patrolling in the village of Basutah with Al-Hazma Brigade and Failaq al-Sham terrorists with him, ordering the people to be dressed in accordance with Shari’a principles and women not to leave their homes through the loudspeakers. He also asked the people to hand their weapons over to them warning those who don’t hand over the weapons would be exiled.
Yesterday our forces have carried out an attack against Al-Zakhlool’s vehicle in the area between Kurzalah and Basutah villages which was resulted in the death of Al-Zakhlool and all of the terrorists with him. Failaq al-Sham gangs, who wanted to intervene after the operation, were also targeted by our forces, three more terrorists were killed and two military vehicles were destroyed as a result of the successful actions.
Recalling the earlier statements we issued regarding the attempts by Turkey and its terrorists to demographicaly change the region by settling terrorists and their families in the city after the people of Afrin have been displaced, we once again stress that settling of these families in Afrin is illegitimate in terms of fundamental human rights and is a clear violation of international law. We reiterate that these terrorists and their families are the main targets of our forces. Our forces will target all the elements in the Afrin Canton that are in contact or cooperation with the Turkish invasion state.
For these reasons, we warn that no one should be a crime partner of the Turkish state and a matter of dirty negotiations in the hands of the Turkish invasion army.
We once again salute the resistance and the struggle by our people that have been forcibly displaced and reiterate our determination to liberate Afrin. The resistance will go on until we give our people their land back, no matter how long it will take.
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Is the Rojava dream at risk?
by Giuseppe Acconcia 02/05/2018 05:33 Internationalist Commune of Rojava
The initial demonstrations and riots in Northern Syria between 2011 and 2012 sparked the formation of new means of popular mobilisation and triggered mass participation in alternative networks that aimed at recruiting ordinary citizens to provide social services, security and self-defence. On the one end, there emerged Local Coordination Committees (LCC’s), set up by grassroots activists who were committed to nonviolence and direct, radical democracy. These became, to many leftist and secular activists, the basis from which Syria would be rebuilt and the basic structure of a grassroots Syrian revolution, lying below and to the left of the official opposition which was now basing itself in Ankara, Turkey.
On the other end, particularly within Kurdish areas, there emerged popular mobilization committees that were inspired by the thought of Abdullah Ocalan and the ideological perspectives of the PKK. In Turkey, their counterparts had already built communes and popular grassroots power to construct their own stateless democracy. Like their Syrian counterparts across the country and their Kurdish counterparts in Turkey, the popular mobilization committees that were built by TEV-DEM (Movement for a Democratic Society) in northern Syria were, too, infused with a radical democratic spirit and predicated on the commune form.
Due to the war, there emerged in Syria popular committees all across the country which provided a blueprint for alternative forms of governance, as opposed to the centralized, bureaucratic, and despotic Assad government which most Syrians rose up against in 2011. Later on, in the context of war in Northern Syria between 2012 and 2016, and with the further emergence of a very diverse range of jihadist groups, including ISIS, the participants within the Local Coordination Committees (LCC) and the popular mobilization committees felt the need to be involved in direct action, including the armed struggle, in order to protect their neighborhoods and substitute the constant absence of security personnel. Thus, in Syria, those social movements evolved into militarised organisations all across Syria.
At that stage, in Northern Syria the Local Committees were pivotal in forming armed entities, such as the People’s Protection Units and Women’s Protection Units (YPG-YPJ) [Yekîneyên Parastina Gel-Yekîneyên Parastina Jin], that began to provide systems of patrols to guarantee local and external security, building up an embryonic autonomous government. When these committees were set up across the country, as self-defence committees, none could imagine the future. It was unpredictable for everybody at the time.
Rojava: A project of radical democracy
Compared to mid-20th-century approaches to guerrilla warfare (e.g. Mao, Che Guevara), the Kurdish communalist project provided a non-violent critique of hierarchical and capitalist societies after Ocalan’s “paradigm shift” in prison. Abandoning the quest for a Kurdish State, Abdullah Öcalan – the ideological figurehead for the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) – proposed theories of democratic autonomy, ecology and women’s liberation as a way forward for the Kurdish Freedom movement, and the peoples’ of West Asia more generally. In Syria, his followers saw a potential to put these ideas into practice with the outbreak of the civil war. As Bookchin explained in order to define his notion of “libertarian municipalism”, “Communalism seeks to recapture the meaning of politics in its broadest, most emancipatory sense. Thus, in Northern Syria popular assemblies have been organised; local councils have been formed in respect to ethnic and gender differences, and work has been coordinated in cooperation with the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK).
In the context of war, voluntary networks of self-defence, forged in an environment of increased political participation, evolved into a more structured military force to confront the growing emergence of jihadist fighters. This process entailed a stronger level of hierarchical organisation and the institutionalisation of daily practices at both the military and civilian levels. Those soldiers were working both to manage and defend Kobanî and its surroundings sometimes with similar tasks or overlapping duties with the security and political apparatus.
This determined the need for a very structured division of duties and a continuous mobilisation of the popular mobilisation committees working simultaneously as service providers and self-defence groups. Women’s participation both within self-defence groups and resistance units has been noticeable. Equality between men and women fighters is an essential part of the political formation of those fighters, as much as their gender awareness. “Love is essential, it is part of everyone’s instinct. The philosophy of death is a way of living. In past times, everyone knew death could come quickly; now it is different and this disconnects us from nature and does not allow us to accept the idea of death. Religion exploits death: if you are a martyr you go to heaven. For us love and death are in contradiction, one YPJ fighter told The Region.
The Enemies of the Kurds after ISIS
If, at an initial stage, YPG/YPJ joined local Committees only with the aim to protect their homes from a lack of security, with the emergence of ISIS’s fighters and their permanent occupation of Rojava, they became highly motivated to be part of the armed struggle. Some of them had a relative killed by ISIS and this was enough to motivate him or her to join the armed struggle. Others felt a duty to defend their homes. “One of my brothers is a martyr” said one participant to us over the course of this research.
The al-Assad government does not have a strong reputation among the YPG/YPJ. In Syria, the major Kurdish political party, the Democratic Union Party (PYD) has always fought its autonomous struggle, characterized by being neither supporting al-Assad nor the rebel opposition, but taking a pragmatic and situational position, depending on what would best benefit their cause. On the one hand, the Arab-led opposition has appeared to be hostile to the Syrian Kurds’ demands. They often accuse the PYD of being in agreement with al-Assad against the Free Syrian Army (FSA), and have even enlisted their own fighters to help Turkey take territory from Syria’s Kurds. On the other hand, the PYD has accused many of the anti-Assad militias of working in coordination with the Turkish army. Whereas some Free Syrian Army battalions work in a strong alliance with their Kurdish counterparts in the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), the relationship between the Kurdish-led PYD and the Syrian Opposition, is quite simply, based on mutual resentment.
The PYD is also quite hostile to the Turkish State, which returns the hostility in kind. Ankara accuses the PYD of being an extension of the outlawed PKK. The PYD believes that Ankara’s disdain for them goes so far as to push the Turkish government to deliver weapons and fighters to ISIS through the Syrian border.
Then there is the relationship between the PYD, and the Kurdistan Democratic Party in Iraq (KDP). The KDP, an ally of Turkey, resents the PYD. It’s political extension on the ground in Syria, the Kurdish National Council, is also equally hostile to the PYD. Both have accused the PYD of being too utopian, and exclusionary (The KNC refuses to acknowledge the autonomous administration of Rojava as legitimate).
And whereas the PYD, in the most literal sense, finds itself surrounded by hostile armed and political forces. The YPG/YPJ, its armed wings, have gained some tactical support from the US coalition against ISIS, due to their effective combat performance against IS.
Territory under the governance of the PYD, moreover, has not had to deal with the vicious bombardments of the al-Assad government, particularly as the Syrian Arab Army and its affiliated militia’s have focused themselves more on fighting against the rebel opposition with the strong military support of Russia and Iran.
It has been over six years since the first popular mobilization committees were formed in Syria. Due to shifting geopolitical dynamics, the Rojava revolution is now under threat.
With the beginning of the Turkish “Olive Branch Operation” on January 20, 2018, it has been even clearer that the Rojava project was perceived as a danger by the neighbouring countries. The Turkish president, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, engaged in strengthening his ties with Iran and Russia, considered, both internally and externally, as more dangerous a pro-workers, pro-ecology, pro-women liberation and communalist movement than ISIS or the regional chaos. A month and a half later, Erdogan successfully occupied the Kurdish held enclave of Afrin, a place of relative peace in war-torn Syria, and a haven for IDP’s. It’s only crime, it seems, was that it implemented the radical democratic vision of the Kurdish Freedom movement in practice.
The Rojava Project and the Afrin attacks
After the Turkish army entered into the Afrin Canton on March the 18th, pro-Turkish rebels have been in complete control of the town, declaring who goes in and who goes out, and holding the enclave under a total occupation. They are joined by Euphrates Shield territory, taken by Turkey in 2016 to separate Afrin from the other cantons of Jezira and Kobani. All what is left, territorially, for Rojava are the cantons of Jezira and Kobani which are, at this point, secured by the US and the anti-ISIS international coalition.
Turkey has threatened to attack these territories as well. And given that the U.S. is an ally of Turkey, it is not clear for how long these cantons will be secured from a Turkish incursion. In these circumstances and with the latest invasion by Turkey, the United Nations estimates that hundred thousands of civilians have been forced to leave Northern Syria.
The Turkish invasion of Afrin, to be sure, is part of a broader reaction from nation states; an ongoing targeted campaign against any kind of left-wing project made possible by the 2011 uprisings in the MENA region. Put succinctly, to be left-wing in West Asia and North Africa today is to be considered a threat for the internal stability by the states of the region. This happened with the labour unions in Egypt and Tunisia, and it happened with the People’s Democratic Party (HDP) in Turkey. The persecution of the YPG/YPJ in Syria, and the Democratic Federation of Northern Syria is part of this same pattern.
The leaders of the Turkish left and other pro-Kurdish leftists are in prison. Parliamentarians within the HDP, a pro-peace alliance between the Turkish left and Kurdish leftists, have been stripped of their immunity. Moreover, the June 24 early elections might have as their first aim to erase the HDP presence in the Turkish Parliament. However, the Rojava project, as the most relevant vanguard against ISIS, is not over yet. “The resistance in Afrin is still strong”, one YPG fighter simply put it to me, so Turkey will not stop until it successfully gets rid of the Kurdish presence across its border.
Despite the tactical support received by the Syrian Kurds, the US, Russia and the al-Assad government did not react to the Turkish attacks on Afrin (with the latter only sending very scant reinforcements), carried out during the UN ceasefire. Thus, the anti-Turkish state sentiment among the Kurdish fighters has flourished again. “Erdogan supported jihadist groups who perpetrated war crimes, murders, tortures and looting” one fighter told The Region. “We knew that the military alliance with the US and Russia would most probably finish after the victory over ISIS” another said.
However, despite the Turkish attacks and a lack of consistent external support for the Syrian Kurdish fighters, the recent opening of the first university in Kobani confirmed that the Rojava dream of forging a more equal society based on gender liberation and a permanent grassroots mobilization in Rojava, regardless of national borders, is still alive. “When we will be back to Afrin, we will be more motivated, as it happened in Kobani after the liberation from ISIS” one fighter hopefully told me. With their morale, he just may be right.
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Anna Campbell’s father: ‘I don’t think I had any right to stop her fighting in Syria’
Dirk Campbell was shocked when his 26-year-old daughter said she was going to join Kurdish forces in Syria. Following her death in action, he talks about her journey from idealist to freedom fighter
When Anna Campbell told her father of her plan to join Kurdish forces fighting Isis, he made a joke that he will forever regret. It was May last year, and the 26-year-old had travelled from her home in Bristol to his, in Lewes, East Sussex, to break the news.
“By then, I knew enough to know that it would imperil her life,” says Dirk Campbell, 67, “but all I could think of to say was: ‘Well, Anna, it’s been nice knowing you.’ I think I was trying to be funny, but she just looked miffed. I think she wanted me to engage with it and either go, ‘Oh, how wonderful,’ or to try to argue her out of it. But I sort of just accepted it. Ten months later, she is dead.”
Anna Campbell died on 15 March when her position was struck by a Turkish missile as she and five other female soldiers helped to evacuate civilians from the besieged city of Afrin in northern Syria. She was one of eight British nationals killed fighting alongside the Kurdish People’s Protection Units (YPG) since the first foreign volunteers arrived in the autumn of 2014.
“People have called Anna a hero and a martyr,” her sister Sara says. “But what’s really difficult for the public to fathom is that she was also this big walking bundle of love: idealist, activist, dedicated bookworm, lover of insects, storyteller, creator of everlasting childhoods …”
Yet it was as a soldier that Anna died, a beaten-up AK-47 in her hand and a pair of old trainers on her feet. Having smuggled herself into Syria, after being recruited by Kurdish activists online, she had signed up with the Kurdish Women’s Protection Units (YPJ) – all-female affiliates of the YPG, a guerrilla group in which officers are elected by their troops.
She gave her life defending Kurdish-held territory from a Turkish invasion. Some might call it someone else’s war. To Anna, her family says, it was personal.
“It was almost as if she was searching for the perfect way of expressing all the values she held closest – humanitarian, ecological, feminist and equal political representation,” says Dirk. “Those were the issues she came to dedicate her life to, and she came to the conclusion that Rojava was where she had to go.”
This Kurdish stronghold in northern Syria is in the throes of revolution. Inspired by the ideology of Abdullah Öcalan, the imprisoned leader of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) in Turkey, and triggered by 2011’s “Arab spring”, people have organised themselves into grassroots assemblies and co-operatives, declaring their autonomy from the state and their wish for real democracy. Anti-capitalist, Marxist and feminist ideas are flourishing, including a system of co-presidentship whereby a man and a woman share power at every level.
“We were shocked when she told us she was going there,” says Dirk, a silver-haired man with a warm smile. “But we weren’t surprised.”
Anna was 11 when Dirk realised there was something different about her. “It seems a small thing, but I remember when she was at school she protected a bumblebee from being tormented by other kids,” he says. “She did it with such strength of will that they ridiculed her. But she didn’t care. She was absolutely single-minded when it came to what she believed in.”
We are sitting in the living room of Dirk’s flat, where three of Anna’s five sisters and her brother have gathered to support their dad. Sophia, at 28 the eldest sister, brings tea. A gallery of obscure musical instruments hang along the wall, all of which Dirk, a folk musician and composer who was a member of the seminal prog band Egg, can play. Books on ecology, veganism, philosophy and politics – some Kurdish – line the bookshelf.
The Campbell household was one where politics was always discussed. “Her mother Adrienne and I were once arrested for staging a sit-in in Boots after they moved the HQ to a Swiss tax haven,” Dirk chuckles.
“Most of her early interest in activism came from Adrienne,” he says. “I remember in 2011, they went to a demonstration at the Houses of Parliament to commemorate the first Suffragette protest. They stormed the Houses of Parliament in Edwardian clothes.”
But really, friends say, it was when Anna went to university in Sheffield to study English and French that those seeds of political activism began to sprout. “The coalition had just started and the government began introducing cuts and increasing fees,” recalls one friend, who prefers not to be named. “It was a big thing and there were student occupations all over the country.”
She was soon reading less of her beloved English classics in favour of books about anarchism, feminism and ecology. She became vegan and dropped out of university after her first year because, as Dirk puts it, “she was much more interested in doing what she was passionate about”.
That same year, 2012, Adrienne died of breast cancer four years after being diagnosed. Anna, then 21, threw herself deeper into the life she had chosen. She had started training as a plumber, but was increasingly drawn to anti-fascist, animal and human rights protests across Europe. She became an anarchist, too, and had the letters ACAB (standing for the punk-era slogan “All coppers are bastards”) tattooed on her ribcage. “She was one of the first people to go into the Jungle in Calais to protect refugees from the gendarmes,” says Dirk. “She wrote letters to prisoners. She gave blood, was a hunt saboteur, protested the Dale Farm eviction and would always rope me into playing the Highland bagpipes at prison demos.”
In 2015, she was beaten unconscious at an anti-fascist march. “She told me a woman had been dragged into the crowd by some fascists and no one was helping her,” recalls sister Rose, 24. “So Anna covered her face so they wouldn’t know she was female and ran in head first after this woman. The fascists beat her to the ground with sticks until a policeman dragged her off.”
By the summer of 2017, her attentions had turned towards the Middle East, where the war in Syria was entering a bloody new phase. The YPG/J, backed by US airstrikes, had all but flushed Isis from large swaths of Syria’s north. But, with the jihadi group now on the run, Turkey saw an opportunity to finally cleanse its borderlands of the Kurdish forces and their revolution. Ankara has long-argued that the YPG/J is linked to its own insurgent group, the Kurdistan Workers’ party (PKK). The US and EU, however, do not consider the YPG terrorists, and have supported them since 2014.
With the Kurds’ fight for existence now on two fronts, Anna’s mind was made up. She didn’t tell her friends of her plans, just her family. She made them promise not to tell a soul. “Of course, I was seriously worried,” says Dirk. “Then, the day that she flew out, the Turks bombed a YPJ position and killed 12 women. I panicked.”
Over the months, Anna stayed in regular touch, sending texts, WhatsApp voice messages and the odd call when she could. “The thing is, whenever Anna called, she gave us a false sense of security,” says Dirk. “Every time she would say: ‘Hiya, everything’s fine. I’m just growing vegetables, sitting at a lookout post. I’m not in any fighting. It’s all a bit boring, really.’ We thought she wasn’t actually in any danger, and that she was coming back in a few months.”
What he didn’t know was that she had, in fact, been deployed to Dier ez-Zor, the stage for Isis’s bitter last stand. “I think if I had known that she was facing lethal fire I would not have been able to sleep,” says Dirk. “I would have tried to get there, to be with her. After all, who’s going to fire on an unarmed white-haired old man?”
Then, on 20 January, Turkish-backed rebels attacked the Kurdish city of Afrin. “It was like nothing I’d ever seen,” another British YPJ fighter, who asked to be known only by her nom de guerre, Ruken Renas, told me from her frontline position last week. “The bombing was really heavy, especially just before the city fell. They hit the hospital; people were fleeing. It was chaos. Hundreds died.”
Nevertheless, Anna was determined to help defend the revolution she had joined. She dyed her blond hair black, and begged her commanders to let her go to Afrin. Finally, they gave in. Two weeks later, she was killed.
When Dirk thinks about the afternoon when Anna told him she was going to war, emotions conflict. “I should have taken her far more seriously,” he says. “I should have got on the internet and looked up everything that was going on. I just didn’t know enough about it. All I knew was that it was a war zone. Perhaps I could have stopped her.”
He pauses for a moment. “But, at the same time, I was really proud of her. I don’t think I had any right to stop her. She was a 26-year-old woman. I had to trust her.”
Of course, there is still the issue of Anna’s body. The Campbells want it back, but with Afrin now under Turkish control, they aren’t sure where to begin. “They’re not going to be putting bodies in a morgue waiting for someone to identify them,” says Dirk. “They’ve probably collected them all up, dumped them in a truck and buried them in a mass grave, which means that if she’s going to be repatriated, it’ll depend on DNA evidence. That will take a very long time. There will be a lot of bodies to examine.”
In the meantime, he will commemorate his daughter by continuing her fight. “I would be betraying Anna’s memory if I didn’t do everything in my power to bring the Kurds’ plight to the attention of the world. Something must be done. And it needs to be done now, before anyone else’s children are killed.”
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TO THE PEOPLES AND THE PUBLIC OPINION
The AKP-MHP fascism has been waging a genocidal invasion operation against Afrin for 51 consecutive days. This genocidal aggression aims at eliminating the democratic system of Afrin and deterritorializing the Kurdish society living there. Therefore, infringing all the laws for war, they have been bombing all villages and towns, killing hundreds of civilian, particularly women and children. They have been destroying the olive groves, raised at great pains. This genocidal invasion operation is being carried out under humanity’s very eyes. One city faces elimination by NATO’s second largest army supplied in arms by many countries. This aggression is being legitimized by regarding it as though it happens between two state’s armies. Those forces which supply arms to the state of Turkey, particularly the permanent members of the United Nations Security Council, are all accomplices to this crime.
The people of Afrin have been defending their olive groves and natural wonder lands against the barbaric attacks of ISIS, El-Nusra, and many other jihadist thugs for seven consecutive years. They have beaten off, at great costs, all the aggressions of these inhumane jihadist thugs. Thousands fell martyr in their defense of Arin against the aggressions of ISIS, Nusra, Ahrar al-Sham and all the other bandit groups. Once all these aggressions failed, the AKP-MHP fascist rule, sustaining and supporting these bandit groups for years, took over their duty. Those supporting ISIS and El-Nusra are now attacking the forces who resisted, at great costs, against them. Russia, which claims it is against ISIS and El-Nusra, has, through dirty deals, shown the green light for these aggressions. Opening the airspace for Turkish warplanes, it has abetted this invasion and genocidal assault. The United States, as the main partner of the anti-ISIS coalition, has, by stating that Afrin is not their area of concern, normalized and legitimized the aggression of AKP-MHP fascism on the area. In doing so, they have punished, with genocide, those forces which resisted against ISIS and El-Nusra, while rewarding the Turkish state, as main sponsor of these jihatist groups. This fact shows the extent to which the political relations and attitudes are going through the most corrupt era of their history.
The people of Afrin, have been heroically resisting against this invasive and genocidal aggression for 51 consecutive days, while many forces, particularly UN, US, Russia have, by opting to be the onlookers to this aggression, encouraged and thus abetted it. The AKP-MHP fascist rule’s “Afrin does not belong to the Kurds” statement clearly reveals the genocide they want to commit. In the absence of any external support, the people of Afrin have drawn on their own resources to stop this genocide and protect their homes and lands against an army equipped with state-of-the-art warfare technology. They have staged an unprecedented resistance in this unbalanced war circumstances. And now the Kurdish people, the peoples of the world, the democratic circles, and the Permanent Members of UN Security Council should actively intervene to sop this genocidal aggression. Particularly, the peoples and the democratic circles face the historical responsibility of showing their resolve to stop this inhumane and fascist aggression.
The Kurdish people have mobilized to stop this invasive aggression. Our people in Europe have taken to streets to further activate the demonstrations they have consistently been staging since the start of the invasion. It seems that more effective legitimate and democratic actions are needed to raise the awareness and conscience of the world public opinion. Demonstrations in Europe need to be supported and complemented by uprisings in all parts of Kurdistan and throughout the world. Our people in Europe and anywhere in the world should stage more effective protests in front of the headquarters and representatives of UN and the European Union and call on them to take actions to stop the genocide in Afrin.
Our peoples, democratic forces and all those who stand in solidarity with the legitimate cause of the Kurdish people should carry on with protests in front of the embassies of Turkey – as the invasion force – and Russia and the US who have shown the green light for the invasion. They should call on these forces to stop attacking and abetting.
Our people in Rojava and Bashur (South Kurdistan-Irak) who can afford going to Afrin, should march there in thousands, as living shields against the genocidal aggression.
Bashur (South) Kurdistan is under the occupation of the Turkish state, which, through many institutions, has turned into a colonialist state. Our people in Bashur should take actions against the military forces and institutions of the occupant Turkish state. The very being of the Kurds and their free and democratic life in all parts of Kurdistan is closely interrelated. Keeping this fact in mind, all the Kurds in all parts of Kurdistan should mobilize all their resources against the Turkish state’s aggression on Afrin. We are approaching Neworz, the day of resistance and survival struggle. Our people should start Newroz preparations from this very day and, inspired by the spirit of Newroz, take to the streets and squares and protest against the Afrin occupation.
These days are the days of uprising for our people. If they don’t rise up today, the people of Afrin and all the peoples of Rojava will face genocide. Recognizing “If not now, so when”, our peoples and the democratic forces should rise up to protect Afrin, the Middle East’s oasis of democracy, stability, and gender emancipation. This will not only be the uprising of the Kurdish people for Afrin, but also that of the peoples of the Middle East and all humanity against fascism.
Believing that the AKP-MHP fascism will fail and an era of democracy in Syria and the Middle East will emerge, we call on our people and all humanity to fulfill their responsibilities.
Co-Presidency of KCK Executive Council 11 March, 2018
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US-backed Kurds brace for dramatic escalation of Turkish invasion that could be bloodier than Aleppo, Raqqa or Eastern Ghouta
The wars in Syria: Kurdish fighters are streaming in their thousands from the front line with Isis to stand up to Erdogan’s forces. But given their six years’ battle experience against a fanatical enemy, Turkey is unlikely to beat the YPG on the ground
PATRICK COCKBURN , MANBIJ, SYRIA, 8 MARCH 2018 , FOR THE INDEPENDENT.
In a field beside an abandoned railway station close to the Turkish border in northern Syria, Kurdish fighters are retraining to withstand Turkish air strikes. “We acted like a regular army when we were fighting Daesh [Isis] with US air support,” says Rojvan, a veteran Kurdish commander of the People’s Protection Units (YPG). “But now it is us who may be under Turkish air attack and we will have to behave more like guerrillas.”
Rojvan and his brigade have just returned from 45 days fighting Isis in Deir Ezzor province in eastern Syria and are waiting orders which may redeploy them to face the Turkish army that invaded the Kurdish enclave of Afrin on 20 January. Rojvan says that “we are mainly armed with light weapons like the Kalashnikov, RPG [rocket propelled grenade launcher] and light machine guns, but we will be resisting tanks and aircraft”. He makes clear that, whatever happened, they would fight to the end.
Kurdish and allied Arab units are streaming north from the front to the east of the Euphrates, where Isis is beginning to counter-attack, in order to stop the Turkish advance. Some 1,700 Arab militia left the area for Afrin on Tuesday and Turkey is demanding that the US stop them. The invasion is now in its seventh week and Rojvan and his fighters take some comfort in the fact that it is moving so slowly. But the Turkish strategy has been to take rural areas before mowing methodically to surround and besiege Afrin City and residential areas.
The big battles in Afrin are still to come and are likely to be as destructive and bloody as anything seen in Eastern Ghouta, Raqqa or East Aleppo. YPG fighters have battle experience stretching back to at least 2012, much of its gained against fanatical opponents like Isis. The likelihood is that, as in Ghouta, the Turkish generals will seek to avoid the heavy losses inevitable in street fighting and pound Afrin into ruins with air strikes and artillery fire. Civilian casualties are bound to be horrendous.
The Syrian Kurds believe they are facing an existential threat. They believe Turkey wants to eliminate not just the enclave of Afrin, but the 25 per cent of Syria that the Kurds have taken with US backing since 2015. Some think that defeat will mean the ethnic cleansing of Kurds from Afrin, which has traditionally been one of their core majority areas. They cite a speech by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan made the day after the start of the invasion started, claiming that “55 per cent of Afrin is Arab, 35 per cent are the Kurds … and about 7 per cent are Turkmen. [We aim] to give Afrin back to its rightful owners.” There is a suspicion among Kurdish leaders that Erdogan plans to create a Sunni bloc of territory north and west of Aleppo which will be under direct or indirect Turkish control.
The Kurdish leaders are convinced that Erdogan is determined to destroy their de facto state in the long run, but differ about the timing and objectives of the present attack. Elham Ahmad, the co-president of the Syrian Democratic Council that helps administer the Kurdish-held area, believes that the Turkish assault on Afrin, if successful, will set “a precedent for a further Turkish military advance”.
Ahmad had just returned from Afrin where she was born and where her family still lives. “Our convoy of 150 civilian cars was hit by a Turkish air strike,” she said. “We ran away from the cars, but 30 of them were destroyed and one person killed.” She is angry that the outside world is exclusively preoccupied with the bombardment of Eastern Ghouta by President Bashar al-Assad’s forces, but ignores similar bombing and shelling in Afrin where, she says, 204 civilians had been killed, including 61 children, as of last weekend.
She expects that the next Turkish target, if its so-called Operation Olive Branch succeeds in Afrin, will be the Arab city of Manbij that was taken by the YPG in 2016. Strategically placed on the main road from Aleppo to the Kurdish heartlands, with a diversion where part of the highway is held by Turkish forces, it is a prosperous looking place full of shops crammed with goods and produce. Local rumour has it that one small shop recently changed hands for $1m (£720,000). It is the main supply line to the Kurdish zone, the highway crowded with oil tankers bringing crude oil from Kurdish-held oilfields far to the east to the Syrian government refinery at Homs.
If local people are nervous about the prospect of being submerged by the impending battle for northern Syria, they are not showing it. After being occupied by Isis and besieged by the YPG, they have strong nerves. They may also reflect that, if war is coming to their city and its 300,000 people, there is not a lot they can do to avert it. The main reason they might feel secure is a US pledge to defend their city against a Turkish attack, a promise backed up by regular and highly visible patrols of five or six US armoured vehicles carrying large Stars and Stripes. But the US willingness to confront its Nato partner Turkey is nuanced, particularly since Isis was defeated last year, though the movement is not entirely dead.
YPG confirms entry of Syrian government forces in Afrin
by Wladimir van Wilgenburg 20/02/2018 12:32 Reuters
The People’s Protection Units (YPG) on Tuesday evening confirmed in a statement received by the region that after several days of negotiations the Syrian government affiliated forces entered Afrin.
“After more than a month of the legendary resistance of our forces against the Turkish invasion army and the terrorist groups aligned with it from Jabhat al-Nusra, Da’esh and others, and causing severe losses for the invaders in equipment and ammunition, as our units considered to call the Syrian govt and its army to undertake its duties in participating in defending Afrin and protecting the Syrian borders against this evil invasion,” YPG spokesperson Nouri Mahmoud said.
“The Syrian government has thus heeded the call and responded to the obligation call and sent military units today on 20 Feb 2018, and that is to concentrate on the borders and participate in defending the unity of Syrian lands and its borders,” he added.
The entry follows days of negotiations. On Monday evening, there were also reports that Syrian government-affiliated forces would enter, but officials said no agreement was reached yet.
But on Tuesday, it was confirmed regime-affiliated forces entered Afrin to stop the attacks by Turkey.
Turkish officials said they would continue attacking Afrin if Syrian government forces entered. Al-Mayadeen reports that Turkish forces have already begun shelling close to the Syrian Government convoy escorting fighters loyal to Assad
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International Freedom Battalion’s statement on 3 fallen fighters
The International Freedom Battalion released a statement over the deaths of three comrades, Samuel Prada Leon, Oliver Francois Jean Le Clainche and Sjoerd Heeger.
Full text of the statement is as follows:
The Afrin Resistance Marches to Victory with Internationalist Martyrs!
Spanish Samuel Prada Leon (Baran Galicia) and French Oliver François Jean Le Clainche (Kendal Breizh), and Dutch Sjoerd Heeger (Baran Sason), internationalist fighters who have participated in the defense of the Rojava revolution and who had been fighting in the Afrin fronts for a while have been immortalized in Afrin and Deir Ez Zor. Comrades Baran and Kendal were martyred on February 10 in Afrin as they resisted the invasion attacks of the AKP fascism. Comrade Baran Sason became immortal on February 12 in Deir Ez Zor, fighting ISIS fascism. With their internationalist awareness and hearts filled with hope, they fought against ISIS regression and against Erdoğan and his gangs in Afrin just the same. They were the most beautiful response to the unifying character of internationalism, against international regressive ideologies that wanted to smother the resistance.
Our internationalist struggle has grown at all points in history with the labor and daring of comrades like Samuel, Oliver and Sjoerd. They followed on the footsteps of Ivana Hoffman, Reece Harding and Michael Isrel. They learned from the struggles of Halil Aksakal, Alper Çakas and Muzaffer Karademir. They fought to defend the revolution of the oppressed against the fascist colonialist invasion and went down in history with their dignity.
Internationalists Continue to Increase Hope in the Afrin Trenches!
In the wave of lies from “We will take Afrin in 3 hours”, to “3 days”, to “we can’t give an exact date”, our resistance has continued for 30 days. The people of Afrin increase their honorable resistance every day against the AKP fascism and Al Nusra/ISIS derivatives with their fearless and daring stance. The union of the Northern Syrian peoples in this resistance, and the fight of SDF, YPG, YPJ and internationalist fighters respond to the invasion attempt by the second largest army in NATO with this resistance of the age. As fighters of the International Freedom Battalion, we increase our will to fight shoulder to shoulder with the self-defense forces of the peoples in the region in the fight against ISIS in Afrin today. Internationalist fighters who have become immortal in Afrin and Deir Ez Zor will continue to be by our side in this struggle.
We the Internationalist Freedom Battalion fighters act today in Afrin with the same will that knows how to pay a price and how to demand a price in Stalingrad, Vietnam, Kobanê and in every inch of liberated land in Rojava and Northern Syria. We take our place on the battle fronts with this consciousness. There is a harsh and unequal war, we are fighting an enemy without honor. But we have not the tiniest doubt that we will prevail. In all fronts, in all positions, we crack down on the colonialist, invading gangs. Our veterans and our martyrs light our way in this struggle.
Our response to Erdoğan’s and his gangs’ inhuman invasion and massacre attacks will be resistance and the victory of our peoples. The stance of Avesta Xabur and all martyrs who became immortal in a self-sacrifice will be our bar to clear in all our actions throughout our resistance. The courage of comrades Baran, Kendal and Baran Sason will continue to light the path of our internationalist struggle.
We remember with respect our comrades who defend our revolution and the gains of our revolution with their lives and fly the flag of internationalism in Afrin. We offer our condolences to our brothers and sisters in arms in YPG International, the families of our martyrs and our peoples.
Internationalist Martyrs are Immortal!
Long Live Our Afrin Resistance!
Long Live Our Internationalist Struggle!
Victory Belongs to People Who Resist!
The International Freedom Battalion
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Why is Turkey targeting Afrin?
Pinar Dinc and Kamran Matin explain what Erdogan, Iran and Russia have to gain from a bloody war on Afrin’s restive Kurdish population.
On January 20, Turkey and its allied Syrian Islamist rebels began an unprovoked military offensive on Syria’s predominantly Kurdish region of Afrin paradoxically codenamed ‘Operation Olive Branch’. Despite its sheer size the operation has made very slow progress and there are independent reports of significant civilian casualties as a result of Turkish army’s indiscriminate aerial bombing, artillery shelling, and reported use of illegal ‘napalm’ bombs.
Turkey claims that its attack on Afrin aims at securing its borders from ‘terrorist’ operations by the ‘People’s Protection Units’ (YPG). Turkey considers YPG an extension of the ‘Kurdistan Worker Party (PKK), which has been in armed conflict with Turkish state since the mid-1980s. Unlike Turkey, US and other Western governments do not consider YPG a terrorist organisation.
However, there has never been any independent reports on any anti-Turkish attack launched from Afrin. In fact, Afrin has been one of the most peaceful regions of Syria throughout its six years old catastrophic civil war. It is also host to nearly half a million refugees from other parts of Syria especially Idlib and Aleppo regions.
Turkey has been hostile towards Syrian Kurds ever since they carved out an autonomous region in north-eastern Syria amidst the civil war. But its current war on Afrin is the first large-scale direct military action against them. The reasons behind this violent gear-change lies in a particular conjunction of domestic politics and regional geopolitics.
Blood for Votes
Domestically, Erdoğan and his ‘Justice and Development Party’ (AKP) pursue a strategy of political entrenchment that has increasingly come to centre on winning elections through fanning nationalist fervour against the Kurds and religious sentiments against the secular dissent and foreign powers.
The first trial of this strategy occurred in 2015 following the electoral success of the pro-Kurdish rights ‘Peoples’ Democratic Party’ (HDP) and the brilliant performance by its co-chair Selahattin Demirtaş, which deprived the AKP lost from its parliamentary majority. Shortly afterwards Turkey resumed war against the PKK, unilaterally terminating peace talks it had been holding with the PKK since 2012. AKP’s resumption of war against the PKK aimed at attracting Turkish ultra-nationalists’ votes and suppressing HDP in the November 2015 snap elections.
In the ensuing conflict hundreds of Kurdish civilians were killed, large parts of several cities were destroyed and historic sites were gentrified, pro-Kurdish politicians (including co-chairs, deputies, and mayors from the HDP) were suspended or detained, and a large number of journalists and human rights activists were jailed. Even academics were not spared. Several hundred of Turkey’s academics who signed the peace petition have been purged on terrorism charges.
AKP recovered its parliamentary majority but political violence continued. It even expanded. Following the attempted military coup in the summer of 2016, Erdoğan orchestrated an extreme and nation-wide campaign of purge and persecution. His motive was twofold. He wanted to destroy once for all his erstwhile Gulenists allies, who had failed to agree with Erdogan over power-sharing, and to win the popular referendum on a revised constitution that would enshrine an executive system with widespread powers for himself as Turkey’s life-time president.
Erdoğan intensified the policy of social polarisation he had started in 2014. He not only demonised the Kurds but also stigmatised the Alevis, Zazas, and non-Muslims, and promoting antisemitism. In fact, in his ‘new Turkey’ Erdoğan made a clear distinction between the virtuous people with a religiously cemented national identity and impious ‘others’ including Kurds, Alevis, leftists, seculars, liberals and Gulenists. Today, even mild criticism is not tolerated as Erdoğan labels all those who do not support his open-ended autocracy collectively as ‘terrorists’.
The final act of Erdogan’s political entrenchment will be the 2019 presidential election in line with the new constitution. And some recent polls suggest that AKP’s popularity has significantly declined standing well below 50%. This can be chiefly attributed to a sustained economic downturn, which has eroded AKP’s petit-bourgeois social-base and disillusioned some sections of Turkey’s conservative capitalist class known as ‘Anatolian tigers’, with the status-quo. A recent split in AKP’s ultra-nationalist allies in the ‘National Movement Party’ (MHP) and the continued popularity of HDP have further reduced AKP’s popular support.
Against this background, Turkey’s war on Afrin is Erdoğan’s attempt to re-stage the ‘blood for votes’ tactic that he successfully tried following the electoral failure in the summer of 2015. And just like 2015, the main instrument to mobilise Turkish ultra-nationalism is an anti-Kurdish war overlain with opposition to the US which Erdogan accuses of the orchestrating the 2016 coup and supporting the Syrian Kurds with the aim of partitioning Turkey.
Erdogan’s pursuit of relevancy in post-ISIS Syria
Erdoğan’s ‘blood for votes’ electoral strategy at home has a mutually reinforcing geopolitical dimension abroad in Syria. Russia’s foray into Syrian civil war killed any hope for Turkey’s strategy of replacing the Assad regime with a friendly Sunni-Islamist government aligned with its ‘neo-Ottomanist’ project of regional hegemony.
At the same time, Syrian Kurds’ effective resistance against ISIS won them international sympathy and Western support. Erdoğan’s Syria policy therefore duly shifted from the overthrow of Assad towards the containment of Syrian Kurds. For any form of autonomy or political recognition of Syrian Kurds would diminish Turkey’s influence in Syria and weaken the AKP’s position vis-a-vis the HDP and the PKK domestically.
Erdoğan’s new anti-Kurdish policy in Syria was initially pursued through ‘active neutrality’ towards ISIS allowing its recruits reach Syria via Turkey and use Turkish soil for staging attacks against YPG and its female-only counterpart ‘Women’s Protection Units’ (YPJ). This circumstance reached a climax during the siege of Kobani by ISIS when Turkeys’ mighty army silently stood by across the border while Erdoğan himself gleefully declared Kobani will fall.
Syrian Kurds’ determined resistance and eventual defeat of ISIS in Kobani paved the way for US’s tactical military partnership with Syrian Kurds. This was vehemently opposed by Turkey. US was able to allay Turkish fears by emphasising the temporary, tactical and anti-ISIS focus of its partnership with the Syrian Kurds, who came to dominate the new multi-ethnic ‘Syrian Democratic Forces’ (SDF). Turkey therefore expected an end to US support for Syrian Kurds after the fall of Raqqa and ISIS’s strategic defeat.
However, Russian and Iranian entrenchment in Syria and the lack of any other effective military-political force with or through which US could affect the eventual political settlement in Syria have led the US to keep its roughly 2000-strong force in north-eastern Syria and continue its military partnership with SDF. This has seriously concerned Turkey, which views this as a prelude to the international recognition and political consolidation of the ‘Democratic Federal System of Northern Syria’ dominated by Syrian Kurds.
Continuing US support for Syrian Kurds have also set the alarm bells off for Russia, Iran and Assad’s regime. Russia and its Syrian and Iranian allies fear that US will try to use the Kurds to direct the peace talks towards a new Assad-free Syria. Iran has its own restive Kurdish minority and fears that Kurdish political consolidation in Syria will have ripple effects reaching Iran across Iraqi Kurdistan where with Turkey’s vocal support and US’s tacit approval it intervened to reverse the results of a Kurdish independence referendum last October. Iran is also concerned that its Syria-based ‘strategic depth’ doctrine will be undermined by Syrian Kurds, who currently control much of Syria’s most fertile agricultural lands and oil fields.
Russia’s rationale for allowing Turkish attack on Afrin is also twofold. It seeks to remind the Syrian Kurds of their vulnerability and therefore force them into compromise with the Assad regime and moving away from the US. In this way, Russia seeks to cement its military success in Syria with a political victory at peace settlement favouring Assad.
At the same time by facilitating Turkish attack on US’s key partner in Syria, Russia is further undermining the strategic alliance between US and Turkey and hence NATO. Russia therefore views Turkey’s war on Afrin as a win-win game. US on the other hand is mindful of Turkey’s irreversible drift towards Russia; a trend that has gathered pace after the 2016 failed coup and the ruthless purges in Turkey’s armed forces. The purges have led to the domination of pro-Russian ‘Euroasianist’ faction of Turkish military and marginalised pro-Western ‘Atlanticists’. This is why US has consistently maintained that it understands Turkish security concerns and at times seems to have made concessions regarding the scale and nature of its support for Syrian Kurds. The US failure to take any meaningful action against Turkey’s current offensive on Afrin is a case in point, one which has expectedly angered the Kurds. However, the zero-sum nature of Turkey’s approach to Syrian Kurds is seriously testing American commitment to supporting them.
All the major actors in the Syrian war therefore see some benefit in Turkey’s war on Afrin. For Syrian Kurds in the firing line, however, the picture is radically different. War has so far brought great loss of civilian life, destruction of cultural and historic sites, and damage to economic infrastructure; a perplexing reward for their heroic and successful resistance against IS. But in resisting Turkey’s aggression, they also see another historic opportunity to affirm their collective existence, cultural recognition, and political autonomy after decades of political and cultural denial and suppression. They deserve support and solidarity from the left.
On January 20, Turkey and its allied Syrian Islamist rebels began an unprovoked military offensive on Syria’s predominantly Kurdish region of Afrin paradoxically codenamed ‘Operation Olive Branch’. Despite its sheer size the operation has made very slow progress and there are independent reports of significant civilian casualties as a result of Turkish army’s indiscriminate aerial bombing, artillery shelling, and reported use of illegal ‘napalm’ bombs.
Turkey claims that its attack on Afrin aims at securing its borders from ‘terrorist’ operations by the ‘People’s Protection Units’ (YPG). Turkey considers YPG an extension of the ‘Kurdistan Worker Party (PKK), which has been in armed conflict with Turkish state since the mid-1980s. Unlike Turkey, US and other Western governments do not consider YPG a terrorist organisation.
However, there has never been any independent reports on any anti-Turkish attack launched from Afrin. In fact, Afrin has been one of the most peaceful regions of Syria throughout its six years old catastrophic civil war. It is also host to nearly half a million refugees from other parts of Syria especially Idlib and Aleppo regions.
Turkey has been hostile towards Syrian Kurds ever since they carved out an autonomous region in north-eastern Syria amidst the civil war. But its current war on Afrin is the first large-scale direct military action against them. The reasons behind this violent gear-change lies in a particular conjunction of domestic politics and regional geopolitics.
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STATEMENT FROM THE KCK EXECUTIVE COUNCIL ON AFRIN
25 JANUARY 2019
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STATEMENT FROM THE
Co-Presidency of KCK Executive Council
21 January, 2018
TO OUR PEOPLES AND THE PUBLIC OPINION
The AKP-MHP fascist rule in Turkey has begun the air and ground invasion operation against the Kurdish town of Afrin. This comes after months of threatening and targeting campaign. Turkey wants to destroy the democratic system which was established on the principle of brotherhood of Kurdish, Arab and Turkmen peoples. There are two main reasons for these attacks. Firstly, the anti-Kurdish AKP-MHP fascist rule wants to destroy Kurdish people’s gains in Afrin. Secondly, the AKP-MHP which have come to the point of losing their power; so they try to shore up their fascist rule by carrying out this invasion operation.
From the early days of the Syrian civil war till now, the people of Afrin have been defending their area against the anti-human jihadist bandits. They have managed to beat off all the attacks of anti-human thugs, particularly those of ISIS and Nusra Front. Afrin has been a safe and free area within Syria, letting no jihadist foot on its ground. Hundreds of thousands of people fleeing from the conflict in other parts of Syria, particularly in Aleppo, have found a safe haven in Afrin. During all these years, the people of the Afrin area have been administering their cities and towns. The women have had a leading role in this form of administration based on self-sufficiency. This has not only turned Afrin into a model for the democratization of Syria but also an example of democratization for the peoples in Turkey, too. The AKP-MHP fascist rule tries to curb this democratic model, because they now the fact that the democratization of Syria will have implications for the solution of the Kurdish question. Recep Tayyip Erdogan got ISIS attack Kobani with the aim of strangling the desire of the Kurdish people for a free and democratic life. Once ISIS failed in fulfilling such an aim, Erdogan has decided to intervene himself. The AKP-MHP fascism stigmatizes all the democratic forces inside Turkey and abroad as terrorists. In doing so, they want to eliminate all the democratic forces resisting their fascist rule. The motive behind their suppression of journalists, academics, and politicians is the same as the motive behind the attack on Afrin.
The AKP-MHP fascist rule’s enmity towards the Kurds is inextricably intertwined with its anti-democratic nature. Therefore, they attack all the democratic circles which they think may pose a threat to their dictatorial reign. They want to portray the freedom fighters of Afrin as the enemies of Turkey and thereby deepen chauvinistic sentiments in a bid to increase support for their rule while they attack democratic circles within Turkey. Therefore, the attack on Afrin is an attempt to shore up the fascist rule of AKP-MHP and at the same time is a campaign to suppress all the democratic circles opposing AKP-MHP rule.
Russia and Syria which had closed the Syrian airspace to Turkey, have given the Turkish regime the permission it desperately needed to conduct air attacks. The people of Afrin have been waging a fierce struggle against bandit groups like ISIS, and Nusra Front. Considering the fact that the freedom fighters of Afrin and Syrian states fought the same enemy for years, letting Turkey use Syrian air space for air attacks against Afrin is a clear sign of a dirty deal against the Kurds. The Syrian regime and Russia have made a dirty deal which will not be in their own interests too. They have made a historical mistake which has pitted the Kurds against them. Russia and the Syrian regime can in no way justify their opening of the air space to Turkish jet. This policy will be called into question and they will be regarded as accomplices to this invasion and aggression.
The people of Afrin has had no aim other than a free and democratic life on their own land. Their self-defense struggle has had one focal point: resisting the aggression of the jihadist bandit groups on their land. And they are now defending their free and democratic life against the offensive of the Turkish army.
While Russia and the Syrian regime let the Turkish state to use the Syrian air space USA motivated the AKP-MHP fascists’ invasion by declaring that Afrin is outside the areas of shared struggle against ISIS. Therefore, USA once again became a party to the Turkish state’s enmity towards the Kurds while it helped Tayyip Erdogan and Devlet Bahceli shore up their fascist rule. Motivating and giving approval to the attack on Afrin and conniving at the aggression means supporting Erdogan and Bahceli fascist regime against the democratic circles. At a time when the Erdogan-Bahceli fascism is about to collapse, not opposing the Afrin invasion only secures Erdogan’s stay in power. Not opposing the invasion of Afrin, both the USA, and the EU countries have supported Erdogan-Bahceli’s oppression against the peoples of Turkey. Thus, Russia, USA, and Europe have become parties to the crimes committed by Erdogan-Bahceli fascism.
During the 20th century, the Kurds were subjected to genocidal policies. International forces supported and connived at these policies. As a result, one of the most ancient peoples of history has been brought to the brink of elimination. Whenever the Kurdish people have resisted the genocidal policies of the Turkish state, the USA and EU have supported the NATO-member Turkey. The main of Turkey in joining the NATO is seeking support for its genocidal policies against the Kurds. Even today, securing this support is the main condition in Turkey’s EU accession talks. These countries’ silence towards Turkey’s genocidal policies against the Kurds means they have are accomplices to the genocide of the Kurds just for securing some economic interests. If USA and EU don’t oppose this genocidal and invasion attacks they will be regarded as accomplice to genocide against the Kurds.
The invasion attack on Afrin is at the same time an act of aggression against all the libertarian and democratic circles in Turkey, Syria and all the Middle East. AKP-MHP fascist rule have targeted all the democratic dynamics of the Middle East with the aim of creating a fertile ground for all the reactionary and despotic forces, particularly ISIS and Nusra Front. Therefore, not only the Kurdish people, but also all the peoples in Turkey, Syria, and the Middle East who want democratization should stand against the Turkish invasion of Afrin. The resistance in Afrin is not only the resistance of the Kurds, but also the resistance of all the democratic forces of the Middle East and the world.
The Turkish offensive against Afrin is neither in the interest of US, nor that of Russia, Syira, EU, and the peoples of the Middle East. Therefore, Russia, US, and the Syrian regime who let and motivated Turkish attack on Afrin should review their policies and take clear attitude against the invasion. Irresponsible attitudes cannot sustain the ground for peace, democracy, and stability in the Middle East created by paying heavy prices.
The Kurdish people in all parts of Kurdistan, particularly in North Kurdistan, and in diaspora should support the Afrin resistance. All the peoples of Syria, particularly the Arab, Kurdish, Assyrian, and Turkmen people living in the Democratic Federation of Northern Syria should see the fact that this attack is against them, too, and should participate in the Afrin resistance.
The peoples of Afrin are one the basic democratic dynamics of the Middle East. All of them, particularly the youth and the women should resist shoulder to shoulder against the invasion forces. They should defend their villages, districts, towns and cities against the aggressors and turn Afrin into a grave for the AKP-MHP fascist gangs.
All the peoples in the world, , who defeated ISIS by standing in solidarity with the freedom fighters of Kobani on November 1, 2014, World Kobani Day, should stand by the resistance forces of Afrin and defeat AKP-MHP dictatorship which has become a center and guardian for the reactionary and despotic forces of the Middle East. Once the AKP-MHP fascist rule is defeated, the dark days of the Middle East will come to an end and the sun of freedom and democracy will rise. As Kurdish Freedom Movement, we will stand by the people of Afrin with all our strength. Neither the Turkish state nor any other force will be able to stop our people’s march for freedom and democracy. Turkey will surely be democratized and the peoples of the Middle East will attain their freedom and democratic rights.
Co-Presidency of KCK Executive Council 21 January, 2018
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Vanguards of Humanity: Why I support Afrin & the Rojava Revolution
by Marcel Cartier 22/01/2018 13:09
The dark clouds of 21st-century fascism are once again hanging over the heads of the people of northern Syria. As if the inhabitants of the region often referred to as Rojava haven’t suffered enough over the course of the past 7 years of war, the Turkish state has come to the conclusion that the time is ripe to pick up the fallen, bloodied sword from the corpse that is Islamic State. Together with Salafist mercenaries carrying flags of the Syrian ‘rebels’ – one of the many components of what at one historical juncture seemingly all so long ago was a cohesive ‘Free Syrian Army’ – Erdogan’s regime vows a ‘swift operation’ to destroy ‘terrorism’ in Afrin.
It is Afrin that has been a beacon of stability in Syria over the course of the war, not only taking in tens of thousands of refugees from elsewhere in the country, but establishing the principles of direct democracy, women’s liberation and ecology in the midst of an otherwise catastrophic and tumultuous period. It is precisely this model of a socialistic, multi-ethnic, feminist canton advocated by the Democratic Union Party (PYD) that Erdogan’s AKP government sees as ‘terrorism’. The irony could not be more obvious.
For those who have been following closely over the past few years the events in not only Afrin, but in the other two cantons that make up the Rojava region (officially the Democratic Federation of Northern Syria), the current battle faced by the Kurdish forces is strangely reminiscent of the 2014-15 battle for Kobane. At that point, the so-called Islamic State was on the verge of reaching the Syria-Turkey border by securing the city known officially as Ayn al-Arab (a brutal reminder of the Arabization and monolithic nation-state mentality of the Ba’athist government). The Kurdish forces of the YPG and YPJ found themselves fighting off the fascist forces as Turkey allowed Daesh militants to enter Syria freely. Turkish tanks sat idle at the border, and soldiers watched the action, hoping for the elimination of the ‘terrorists’ – not Daesh, of course, but of the Kurds! The so-called international community was silent, until the U.S. intervened with airstrikes after an enormous amount of pressure in the form of massive global protests.
Today in Afrin, as Turkish planes and tanks aim to finish the job that the Islamic State was incapable of accomplishing, world leaders are again silent. Although a relationship had been forged in recent years between Russia and the YPG/J in Afrin, Moscow now seems to have withdrawn its forces, clearing the way for the Turkish incursion. The United States, although supportive of the YPG/J’s operations against Daesh east of the Euphrates River, has wiped its hands of any association with their ‘allies’ in Afrin. The Syrian government has said that it will shoot down Ankara’s planes – yet it seems as if the actions of Erdogan’s regime have so far gone unopposed.
This understandably leaves the Kurdish people and their forces in Afrin feeling as if the old maxim ‘the Kurds have no friends but the mountains’ is once again deeply relevant. Perhaps they understood throughout the complexities and twists and turns of the war that this was always the case.
After all, my experiences in Rojava last year confirmed to me that the YPG/J was far from a ‘pawn’ of ‘puppet’ of anybody, despite the often misunderstood relationship between them and Washington. In fact, it was clear to me that they were preparing more than a year ago for not only an eventual Turkish military operation, but for the moment that self-reliance would have to be stepped up and a fight undertaken on their own to protect the territory of Rojava and the gains of their revolution.
My inability to Understand Rojava Before 2015
Today, I am yelling at the top of my lungs in support for the people of Afrin and for the Kurdish forces of the YPG and YPJ. There are hundreds of solidarity demonstrations taking place across the western world. Yet, just over three years ago when the Islamic State was threatening to take Kobane, I lacked the understanding of the situation in the country to adequately provide that same solidarity. I didn’t attend any of these protests despite the considerable threat that was being manifested toward an anti-fascist militia that espoused principles largely in line with my own.
Indeed, this is part of my confessions – or rather, self-critical assessment. I wasn’t always the most supportive of the idea that what was taking place in northern Syria constituted a real revolutionary process. In fact, much of the reason that I have decided to undertake such a considerable amount of writing since the time I spent in Rojava last year is that my experiences there made me feel a sense of urgency about being critically reflective of my previous erroneous positions. I knew that if ‘observation and participation’ in the revolution has altered my understanding of Syria, there was at least the possibility that my work could have that kind of impact on others who perhaps hold positions akin to those I used to.
Let me break it down from the beginning. In 2013, exactly five years ago next month, I visited Kurdistan for the first time. This trip took me to the territory controlled by the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) in northern Iraq. Although I may have set foot in Kurdish lands, the week that I spent there did little to reveal the true nature of Kurdistan as a whole – or perhaps I simply didn’t bother to look hard enough or investigate aptly. Nonetheless, I was convinced that the KRG was little more than a puppet entity of the United States. That assessment may not be so far off the mark – but the problem was that I failed to grasp the differences between ‘the Kurds’ of Bashur (Iraq) and Rojava (Syria), not to mention Rojhilat (Iran) or Bakur (Turkey). [see my previous article ‘The Kurds: Internationalists or Narrow Nationalists?]
Throughout 2013, the focus of the United States was on whether it should engage in a direct intervention in the Syrian war by means of airstrikes on Syrian Arab Army targets. Understandably, this put the anti-war movement and socialist activists in the U.S. in a position of putting its emphasis on opposing any machinations of the Obama administration to launch a wider war in Syria. At this time, my principal obligation seemed clear – oppose the aggression of the Obama administration and my own government. I believe such a position is pivotal. However, all too often socialist activists in the western metropoles have a tendency to put anti-imperialism on ‘steroids’ – in other words, to reduce geopolitics to a single contradiction, refusing to seriously investigate the contradictions of the state in question, or of the other dynamics at play.
To be clear, it’s not as if I saw the Ba’athist government as one that I was ideologically aligned with. It’s not as if I didn’t engage in some level of investigation of the situation on the ground throughout the whole of the country. In fact, in songs like ‘Hands Off Syria’ – which I released in the Spring of 2012 – I explicitly mention that ‘there’s been problems in Syria for quite a long time.’ Perhaps this was too little in the way of expressing the reality in the country, but it did try to account for the fact that the dynamics in the country were complex and that any defence of the Syrian state vis-à-vis imperialism wasn’t the same as overt support for the policies of that state.
Grappling with Kobane and the Resistance of the Kurds
However, the general tendency that I grew to express was more and more toward full solidarity with Syrian Arab state. The problem with this position wasn’t so much the fact that I explained the machinations of imperialism toward a government that defied its diktat in the region, particularly in regards to the colonial settler entity of Israel. The problem also wasn’t that I expressed how the U.S. government’s support for the so-called ‘rebels’ was creating a situation in which Shia, Christian, or even Sunni communities were facing genocidal consequences. It was simply that I was simplifying the narrative, and not giving voice to those who had been the victims of a monolithic Syrian state based on racial and ethnic prejudice for decades.
I first began to grapple with this during the battle of Kobane. It was obvious that the so-called Islamic State was enemy number one in the country. This was largely agreed across political lines – by so-called ‘moderates’ within the FSA, by the Syrian state, and of course by the Kurdish forces who were bearing the brunt of their fascistic attacks.
Kobane first highlighted the fierce resistance of the YPG/J to the world at large. Although these forces had defended predominately Kurdish lands in Syria since the beginning of the Rojava Revolution in the Spring of 2012, this battle would finally bring these fighters’ struggle to international attention, as well as that of the Kurdish question in general. Suddenly, the nearly 40 years that the Kurdish movement had fought the genocidal policies of the Turkish state also began to achieve a certain level of recognition.
It is true that the women’s revolution in Kobane and Rojava was fetishized in the mainstream western press. Beyond the H&M adverts, a more thorough examination showed that it was the consequence of a deliberate policy to liberate women from patriarchal oppression that was first undertaken in the ranks of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), not in Syria, but inside of Turkish borders.
It was not until the martyrdom of Ivana Hoffmann, a German internationalist in the ranks of the Marxist-Leninist Communist Party (MLKP) in Syria in March of 2015 that I began to seriously reflect on the correctness of my political understanding of Syria. I knew that there were communist parties in Syria that had been in a de-facto alliance with the Syrian state against the moves of imperialism. Yet, I did not realise that there had been Turkish communist groups that had been fighting side by side with the Kurdish forces. Not only were these cadres from Bakur but many of them – like Ivana – were young internationalists. Ivana did not die in Kobane, but her death became linked to that decisive battle in historical memory.
Investigation and Participation
I knew that I needed to investigate the matter further. Therefore, I made it my business to make sure that I travelled to Rojava to see for myself what was taking place in the areas of Syria which were experiencing what the Kurdish forces called a ‘revolution’. Was this really the case? Or was this a mere attempt by the U.S. to carve out a proto-state in a part of Syrian territory?
Any doubts I may have had about whether or not the ‘Rojava Revolution’ was a genuine revolutionary process were put to bed within mere days of arriving in Syria. I soon realized what an absolute travesty it was that people who are generally aligned with the left in the west had fallen into the mistaken position of referring to these Kurdish forces as ‘Zio Kurds’ (despite a historical relationship with the revolutionary Palestinian movement), ‘separatists’ (despite an unflinching opposition to any plans to partition Syria), or imperialist proxies (despite fighting imperialism for nearly 40 years).
Let me be honest: admitting that I have been wrong, especially for years on end on such a key political question, wasn’t easy. In fact, the hardest thing about being in Syria was having to engage in the daily ‘tekmil’ – criticism and self-criticism sessions. Coming from our western experiences, it just isn’t that easy to not take such sessions deeply personally, even if their focus is on improving the character of revolutionaries.
To be clear, this does not mean that I think those journalists and activists who have been to government-held areas of Syria are necessarily wrong in the positions they have put forward in the so-called western alternative media. Given the malicious war propaganda put forward by the western mainstream press, particularly in the U.S, it is important to defy these perspectives. I do not doubt that the Ba’athist state enjoys considerable support in many areas of Syria. Personally, I know countless Syrians who may have been critical of the state before the war, but who have increasingly sympathised with Bashar al-Assad’s leadership and view his presidency as a stabilising factor. This is particularly true, from my experiences, among Christians from Syria who see the Ba’athist government as a secular and moderate force.
In fact, it does not surprise me that many who have been to Damascus and other regions of the country see the government as a progressive entity. Especially given the war and the outlook of the factions opposed to the state, this seems to be an entirely understandable conclusion. In some parts of Damascus, I am certain that the Ba’athist state may be viewed as the bastion of progressiveness, secularism, and inclusiveness. I do not doubt the sincerity of the journalists and activists who have reported on this reality within the country. The only thing I doubt – and have come to understand – is that their views are incomplete.
What is a secular, progressive government to an Arab Christian, Alawi, or even Sunni living in a considerable part of the country is the same government that I came to see that for an Assyrian, Kurd, or other ethnic minority in the north of the country was a ‘fascist’ regime. The stories I heard of the repressive policies of this state were harrowing. For sure, if I had simply gone to Damascus, I may have just reinforced my existing beliefs and perspectives. Yet, I was eager not to do precisely that. I was eager to see more of the country, to do what many of my other journalist colleagues as yet hadn’t done.
It is true that the Syrian Arab state has been part of the so-called ‘resistance axis’ to Zionism and imperialism in the region. Yet, everything has a dual character. The state’s orientation vis-à-vis imperialism may be progressive. It may be anti-colonial. However, it is internal policies have also exhibited a considerable degree of colonialism as far as the Kurds are concerned. It seems laughable to many in the north of the country to seriously speak of a ‘resistance axis’ to occupation when their lives have been characterised by exclusion and suppression of their language and culture.
The Left Must Express Its Solidarity With Afrin
Things changed post-Rojava. Gone was any conception or idea that perhaps the administration behind this region’s transformation was anything less than revolutionary. Gone was any semblance of thought that this governing structure was a proxy of imperialism. Gone was any notion that this system should not be supported overtly. I knew that I had to turn over a new leaf in raising my voice in solidarity with Rojava, and of convincing those who thought as I previously had – who were at the very least sceptical about ‘the Kurds’ – that this was a historical process worth supporting, even if critically.
Of course, I’m well aware that just as the views of those who have only travelled to Syrian government-held areas are limited in scope, so are mine. My assessments are frank, sincere, and I believe correct. However, I certainly won’t fall into the trap of claiming that I am a Syria ‘expert’ or that I possess all of the answers. I will only assert that what I have seen gives me tremendous hope in the potential for humanity and for socialism’s revival.
Until now, I do not think I have clearly expressed that I know my previous position on Syria to have been incorrect – or perhaps to phrase it better, to have been far too simplistic and incomplete. In that regard, take this as my public self-criticism. I will never again be so arrogant and simplistic to believe that major world conflagrations can be boiled down to a single contradiction. I will do my utmost never again to fail to express my solidarity with the struggle of the oppressed and downtrodden resisting fascistic structures and barbarism.
Three years ago, I should have been in complete solidarity with the resistance of Kobane. Honestly, I failed. Today, I am demanding the international left engage in a serious assessment of just how significant the Rojava Revolution is at this historical juncture as the radical left reconstitutes itself globally. Solidarity with Afrin should be front and centre at this moment. I fully believe that anything less than this is a full betrayal of the principles of humanity and abandonment one of the most progressive forces currently in existence.
Although it is, of course, true that my writings on Rojava may be reflective of the human flaw of containing romantic sentiments – and I believe they probably are – I would not consider it an overstatement to say that the revolution being defended with the gun by the YPG and YPJ is akin to the vanguard of humanity.
That makes it all the more difficult to be within the confines of western capitalist modernity while this attack on Afrin takes place. My soul and my spirit are in Rojava at this crucial moment. I yearn to be able to be there to physically resist the attacks of the fascist Turkish government and mercenaries against this radical, democratic experiment. Although I know that this is not possible for the time being, what is possible is that we do all we can in the western metropoles to raise our voices to make sure that Afrin does not become a victory for the neo-Ottoman ambitions of the Erdogan government. Anything less is indeed to betray the principles of revolution and internationalism.
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Could the Kurds beat Turkey in Syria?
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We are trying to build Democracy in Syria. So why is Turkey attacking us?
Kurds say heavy Turkish-backed attacks were repelled in Afrin
by Wladimir van Wilgenburg 22/01/2018 00:48 Reuters
The Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) on Sunday said they have repelled attacks by the Turkish army and affiliated rebels in Afrin. This, while the Turkish government media claimed the Turkish-backed forces took some villages near the border of Afrin.
On Sunday heavy clashes took place between the Turkish-backed rebels and the SDF. This comes a day after heavy Turkish air strikes pounded the city of Afrin and the villages near the border.
Speaking to The Region, a local official Mustafa Shan said that “A half an hour ago, the Afrin suburb was shelled but the morale is high and we hope nothing will happen,” he added.
Roj Moussa, a local journalist in Afrin told The Region that the Turkish-backed rebels failed to enter into YPG strongholds. “The militants couldn’t cross to the villages of Shinkal and Kurdo. The clashes continued and the YPG forces confronted them and bombed a tank in the Kordo village and two tanks in the Dikmash village,” he added.
Nevertheless, later in the evening several civilians were killed, an official of the People’s Protection Units (YPG) told the Region.
“The Turkish army shelled Afrin today again and until an hour ago the planes were flying in the sky. Today, a massacre took place in the town of Siruj in the north-east of Afrin and some children were killed,” the YPG official based in Afrin said.
“9 civilians were killed, including 6 children and the rest we couldn’t recognize because not much was left of their bodies” the YPG official in Afrin said.
However, the official denied Turkish soldiers were captured.
“The clashes were strong today, especially in Rajo and Bilbil. The operation was carried out by the Turkish army and its militias and is continuing so far in the villages of Adama and Surki in the south of Afrin,” the official added late in the afternoon.
According to a statement made by the SDF, the Turkish-backed rebels and army were repelled later during the day.
“The Turkish occupation army, which failed to advance into Afrin on the ground, once again targeted civilians with multiple airstrikes. The bombardment carried out on Rubar IDP camp, Cilbir village of Sherawa district and the area surrounding Afrin city center caused many civilian deaths,” the SDF said.
The SDF also accused the Turkish Army of attacking Hatay city and placing the blame on the SDF. They rebuked what they insinuated what was an orchestrated media campaign by Ankara.
“The Turkish occupation army attacks Reyhanli district of Hatay city itself only to legitimate the ongoing massacre and blames our forces for this.” the SDF stated in a public statement. “We once again stress that the social media rumors and the allegations delivered by some media outlets should not be trusted unless officially confirmed by General Command statements. SDF General Command will keep the public up to date about the results of the battle and resistance,” the SDF said.
The SDF said they would announce more details on the operation later.
Another SDF official in a public statement suggested that the Turkish-backed forces faced heavy losses after attacks by the SDF, recapturing lost positions and seizing the bodies of dead soldiers and rebels and destroying some tanks.
“Some tanks were left being destroyed on the battlefield, while soldiers escaped. The number of deaths, injured are still not clear, but will be released later. The situation is good, the moral is high and the guerrilla-style attacks are continuing,” the SDF official said.
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Syrian Kurdish YPG says ‘no choice but to resist’ after Turkish strikes
“We will defeat this aggression, like we have defeated other such assaults against our villages and cities,” the YPG, which has battled Islamic State with U.S. backing, said.
The YPG urged men and women in north Syria to join its ranks to protect Afrin.
Turkey opened a new front in Syria’s war on Saturday, striking the Afrin region and raising the prospect of deeper strains between Ankara and NATO ally Washington.
SULAIMANI – The Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) will not remain silent over the Turkish attacks on Afrin canton, member of the group’s executive council committee said.
Speaking to PKK-affiliate media on Saturday (January 20), PKK Executive Council Committee member Murat Karayilan said the PKK would defend Afrin if Turkey attacks the canton.
“Attack on Afrin is like an attack on the entire Kurdish nation,” Karayilan added, calling on the international community not to back Turkey.
Before formal airstrikes started he said, “If Turkey launches any airstrikes on Afrin, we will consider it as if Russia has allowed Turkey, because the Afrin sky is under control of Russia.”
PKK knows Turkey cannot enter Afrin alone because the group has been fighting Turkey for 35 years, Karayilan said.
Afrin, a hilly region that falls in Syria’s northern Aleppo province, is home to more than a million people including displaced families.
Turkey and allied Syrian rebels on Saturday began an air and ground operation, dubbed operation “Olive Branch,” aimed at ousting the People’s Protection Units (YPG) from the Kurdish-majority pocket.
Russia on Saturday said its troops were withdrawing from the Afrin region, where they had been stationed to manage a buffer zone between Kurds and Turkish-backed rebels and also train to Kurdish fighters.
In a statement issued late Saturday, the YPG said it would “hold Russia responsible for these attacks just as much as Turkey.”
Turkey vehemently opposes the YPG because of its links to PKK, which has waged an insurgency inside Turkey for three decades.
But the YPG has been the key ally of Turkey’s fellow NATO member, the United States, in the fight against Islamic State (ISIS), playing a key role in pushing the extremists out of their Syrian strongholds.
(NRT)
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The people of Afrin today said no to Turkish occupation and no to Turkish attacks
Thousands of Kurds on Thursday protested in Afrin against Turkish invasion plans, while also denying Turkish claims civilians were fleeing the Syrian canton. “Afrin is a cemetery of Erdogan,” one banner read at the protests.
“The people of Afrin today said no to Turkish occupation and no to Turkish attacks on their ground, against their civilians,” Roj Moussa, 20, a journalist, said after the protests.
“It was a huge protest, despite the rain and wind – I’ve never seen such huge protests before,” he added.
The people of Afrin today said no to Turkish occupation and no to Turkish attacks
– Roj Moussa, Afrin resident and journalist
The protests come after days of mobilisation of Turkish armour and artillery on its border, and threats from Ankara that it will destroy the YPG militia in the canton, which it considers to be a terrorist organisation. Afrin was hit by Turkish artillery on Thursday morning.
The district of Afrin is home to about 500,000 civilians, a population which has doubled with refugees from fighting in other areas of the country.
It has been mostly spared such violence and is protected by the YPG – and the threat of Turkish invasion brings defiance from its people.
Azad, an IT engineer who marched against the Turkish threats on Thursday, said the protest was aimed against the recent shelling of villages by the Turkish army.
“A number of missiles targeted Afrin city centre, but it did not leave much damage,” he said.
“The number of people leaving is limited compared to what the media says,” he said about reports in the Turkish media that people in Afrin were leaving.
A woman holds a picture of PKK leader Abdullah Ocalan during a rally in Afrin (Reuters) ‘We are not afraid’
According to Serbest, 37, who works at the local university, the Kurds in Afrin will not flee their homes.
“We have our mountains and caves, we will defend and stay. I was a half-hour ago in the streets, life was ordinary, markets were open, young people in the coffee shops,” he said.
“Some expect an attack and others not. But some people are worried.”
Nariman Hesso, a 25-year-old pro-Kurdish journalist, told Middle East Eye that despite Thursday’s shelling “men, women and children came to the streets and sent an answer to Erdogan that they are never afraid”.
“The morale of people is very high and they will never give up their land. We will stand until the end against the Turkish attacks until the last drop of blood in their body,” she said.
The sons and daughters of the entirety of Rojava can resist the Turkish invasion in Afrin
– Roj Moussa, Afrin resident
Roj Moussa added: “Life is normal in Afrin, despite the Turkish occupation threats we are here, and we are here to stay.
“All the attacks in the last four days of the Turkish government made the people more powerful.”
“The sons and daughters of Afrin took part in the liberation of Raqqa, Deir Ezzor, and Manbij. Arin Mirkan [a female fighter from Afrin who died in Kobani in October 2014] was a symbol of the Kobani resistance,” Moussa added.
“The sons and daughters of the entirety of Rojava can resist the Turkish invasion in Afrin,” he added.
YPG and US soldiers have fought side by side against IS in Syria. But the US says it has no interests in Afrin (AFP) Kurds look to Russia
Anger has also spread in Afrin over the US declaration that it had no interests in Afrin. Mohammed Bilo, another journalist in the canton, said all eyes were on Russia, which has military observers in the area.
“Afrin is under the influence of Russia,” he said.
Abdulkarim Omer, the head of foreign relations for Jazira canton in northern Syria, called on both Russia and the US to pressure Turkey.
“A Turkish attack on Afrin will complicate the crisis in Syria,” he told Middle East Eye. “It will affect the political process. We call on the international community and the US-led coalition to pressure the Turkish government.
“Both Russia and the United States should stop the Turkish government from attacking Afrin.
“Any attack on Afrin means the beginning of the end for the [Russian-sponsored] Sochi talks and the entire negotiations process will return to square one,” he added.
“We hope the international community will not stand still and condemn such attacks and pressure Turkey to reconsider its policies in Syria,” he stated.
Turkish tanks are transported to the border with Afrin (Reuters) Doubts over Turkish threats
However, Omar Aloush, a senior Kurdish member of the Raqqa civil council, which controls the liberated city, doubts Russia or the US would allow a Turkish invasion.
“The US is trying to adopt a policy of dual containment, to ensure our participation in the war against terrorism, and to ensure Turkey does not support Russia,” he added.
“In the meantime, Russia does not want Turkey to have a larger role [in Syria],” he added.
On Thursday, the Syrian government warned it is ready to destroy Turkish planes should they enter Turkish airspace
“This is a Russian message to avoid an agreement with Turkey [on Afrin],” an anonymous YPG official told MEE.
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KCK: 2018 will be the year of collapse for AKP fascism
KCK Executive Council Co-presidency stated that the struggle of 2018 will bring about the end of AKP-MHP fascism and all other centralist and authoritarian governments in the Middle East.
The statement by KCK stated the following:
“2017 became a year of great struggle for the peoples of Kurdistan and the Middle East that gave a great fight in order for freedom to prevail in the Third World War centred on the Middle East. Peoples of Bakurê (Northern) Kurdîstan and Northern Syria led the struggle for freedom and democracy with the fight they have developed. The uprisings in Bashurê (Southern) Kurdîstan and Iran at the end of the year have manifested all Middle Eastern peoples’ desire for a free and democratic life. The democratic revolution developed in Kurdistan on the path of Leader Apo (Abdullah Öcalan) has spread to entire Middle East. The democratic revolutionary struggles based on Leader Apo’s libertarian ecological democratic society paradigm will continue to be the hope of peoples during 2018 as well.
The despotic, authoritarian and centralist forces of the Middle East will obtain no results no matter how cruelly they might attack the peoples’ freedom and democracy struggle. History and society has risen up in the Middle East. Fascist governments in countries like Turkey cannot achieve a result in spite of all their efforts to oppress the people’s freedom struggle. Despite the fact that Turkey has become the center of Middle Eastern reactionism and despotism, the AKP-MHP government is being through its weakest period, so much so that they are afraid of their own shadow even. A slightest criticism and popular movement shakes the AKP-MHP fascism. This fascism brings about its own end as it increases its repression.”
“AKP GOVERNMENT WILL BE BROUGHT TO AN END”
The statement by KCK Executive Council Co-presidency continued;
“Kurdish people and Turkey’s democratic circles gave a significant struggle during the year of 2017. Guerrilla defeated the attacks of annihilation with the self-sacrificing resistance they mounted, and brought the Turkish state to the brink of economic, social and political collapse. Despite the AKP-MHP fascism trying its best to prevent their collapse by stepping up its chauvinism, the struggle to develop during 2018 will counteract this chauvinism and bring about the end of AKP government.
Peoples of the Middle East want to get rid of despotic, authoritarian and centralist governments. The uprising of people even in the areas of most cruel oppression manifests the fact that such governments will not be able to survive. All centralist authoritarian governments, the fascist AKP-MHP government in the first place, will come to an end.
“2018 WILL BE THE YEAR OF ENHANCING THE STRUGGLE”
Stressing that the peoples of Middle East deserve a free and democratic life with all the sacrifices they have made, KCK said;
“Rojava Revolution and forces of the Democratic Federation of Northern Syria have proven that significant gains could be made on the path to a free and democratic life in the event of making sacrifices.
The Middle East has entered a process when history will be re-written with regard to freedom, democracy and societism.
We call upon the peoples of Kurdistan and the entire region to enhance the struggle on the basis of democratic nation perspective and make Middle East a territory of socialist free and democratic life during the year of 2018.”
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On September 26, 2017, whilst he was filming the historic liberation of Raqqa from ISIS and doing media work for the People’s Defense Units (YPG), Mehmet was murdered by the cowardly fascists of ISIS. Mehmet’s blood — just like that of thousands of his fallen comrades — is nourishing the soil of that land, where the determined struggle of the people is forming the foundation of a free and just life, in a time and place of chaos, war and brutality.
Until his last breath, Mehmet lived with the pure joy of having finally reached the lands that realized his utopias: Rojava. He traveled there to become the worthy comrade of the free woman. He documented the lives and struggles of the Kurds, Arabs, Armenians, Turkmen, Chechens, Syriacs and Assyrians fighting side by side against the forces of darkness.
By transforming himself into a militant of justice, a comrade of peoples, a fighter for truth and defender of life, his direct action made him become a realizer of utopias that many no longer dare to dream of. In his own words: “Don’t surrender to capitalism. Don’t surrender to materialism, ugly relationships, lovelessness, disrespect, degeneration and inequality.”
Today, the heroes that have liberated Raqqa are mourning him, as they promise to make him live on in the futures they create in a free Middle East.
It is impossible to tell the story of a twenty-first century revolutionary, of somebody who smiled at death with the knowledge that the future will be ours. The words that could do him justice can only be found in our constant, tireless efforts to resist fascism and keep his struggle alive.
We don’t have the words to describe this historic loss, not even with the ink of our bleeding hearts. With the deepest revolutionary respect, we share a selected excerpt from Mehmet Aksoy’s last letter to his family:
I am writing this letter to you from South Kurdistan. When you read this letter, I will have crossed to West Kurdistan, to Rojava. Don’t be upset with me for not having let you know beforehand; I did not want you to be worried.
In fact, I should have written this letter to you years ago. For years, I kept writing and re-writing this letter over and over again in my head, but I did not want to sadden you. Even at the cost of living in a system that I reject, of being unhappy, I tried to live this life, but I did not succeed. Time is passing now. Now is the time to take more courageous and more determined steps, and I am trying to take those steps.
In this sense, I am taking these steps and writing this letter not with my own pen, but with the pens of all the Deniz, Mahir, Ibrahim, Mazlum, Berîtan, Fîraz and Leaders and the faith and courage that I have gained from them. I want you to understand this.Do you know that my return to the homeland is above all for the liberation of women? I have come here to support, live with, and be in common struggle with the women who resist, fight and create a new, free life with their own hands.
Lastly, I can say this: from now on, I want to live my future life in my own country, up close with my own people. An infinite amount of labor, events, love, pain, happiness, thought, people and hope that have all made me who I am pushed me towards this decision. It could not have happened otherwise. I have never lived for individual things, for money, for power, for force or material things. Since my childhood, I have always sought, created and tried to increase love, friendship and sharing. And I am lucky, I have had very beautiful friends. I am sending them my greetings and love from here. Each one of them is invaluable to me. However, I have found the most beautiful friendship in this movement, in this party. I am above all here for that comradeship. And of course, connected to that, for all our martyrs and our leader, who have created this comradeship.
It is serving this movement and people, which provides me with the most valuable and meaningful form of happiness. I hope I can live up to it. Don’t worry about me.
In the wish to meet again in a free country, with a free leader…
Your son, your big brother, who loves you to eternity,
Mehmet
