IRAQI KURDISTAN

HPG reports Turkish attacks with banned weapons

Turkey continues to commit war crimes in Kurdistan. According to the HPG, numerous areas in the Medya Defence Zones were attacked with banned weapons and warplanes.


ANF
BEHDINAN
Friday, 6 December 2024


The Press Office of the People's Defence Forces (HPG) reported that the Turkish army is intensifying its attacks with banned weapons in the guerrilla-held Medya Defence Zones in southern Kurdistan (northern Iraq).

In a statement published on Friday on the current state of the war in the Medya Defence Zones, HPG reported 30 Turkish attacks with banned explosives against tunnels in Zap and Metîna between 2 and 5 December. In three other cases, chemicals containing phosphorus were used against the tunnels under the Sere Metina massif. ‘This is another war crime,’ the HPG emphasised.

The HPG also reported 47 air strikes carried out by Turkish fighter jets and helicopters during the same period. According to the statement, these strikes targeted areas in the Gare, Metîna, Xakurke and Zap regions. The guerrilla forces responded to the military violence of the Turkish occupation troops with various actions, primarily on the western front of the Zap region. Among other things, the construction of a new military road to Girê Bahar was interrupted by heavy weapons. In Girê Amêdîyê, snipers from the Free Women's Troops (YJA Star) destroyed both a radar system and a surveillance camera.

In addition, YJA Star guerrillas in Girê Cûdî targeted moving military forces. According to the HPG, guerrillas carried out three consecutive actions the day before against a troop of occupiers approaching the tunnel systems. The attempted advance was stopped by the successful intervention of the YJA Star guerrillas. In Serê Metîna, YJA Star guerrillas destroyed a surveillance camera and damaged a military position that had been set up in the region.

Official: Hundreds of Yazidis displaced amid security escalation in Aleppo

2024-12-08 

Shafaq News/ Hundreds of Yazidi families have fled their homes in several areas of Aleppo, Syria, following recent developments and the takeover of the city by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), activist Jaber Jando said on Sunday.

Jando told Shafaq News that more than 350 Yazidi families have been displaced from areas including Shahba, Tal Rifaat, Sheikh Maqsoud, and Ashrafieh. “These families have sought refuge in the Al-Jazeera region, particularly in the cities of Hasakah and Qamishli.”

"The deteriorating security situation and escalating risks forced these families to abandon their homes in search of safer areas," Jando said, noting the worsening humanitarian and security conditions across the country.

Jando expressed grave concerns about the ongoing displacement, emphasizing that Yazidi families who have settled temporarily in safer areas are enduring harsh living conditions. "They lack basic necessities and have no access to official shelters or essential services," he said.

The absence of international organizations in affected areas has worsened the plight of the displaced Yazidis. "They are in urgent need of humanitarian aid, especially as winter approaches, which will further exacerbate their already dire living conditions," Jando said.

He called for immediate intervention by the international community and humanitarian organizations to provide urgent assistance to displaced families.

Jando described this day as historic for the Syrian people following the fall of Bashar al-Assad’s regime. However, he warned that the political changes have been accompanied by fears among Syrians, particularly concerning the emergence of extremist groups that could threaten social cohesion and the future of peaceful coexistence in the country.

Aleppo, known for its rich religious diversity, has historically been a hub of coexistence among Muslims, Christians, and other minorities. However, recent conflicts have disrupted this heritage. The recent takeover of Aleppo by HTS has prompted mixed reactions among the city's minorities. While HTS issued statements assuring these communities of their protection and respect, past experiences have left them wary.

During ISIS's control of Aleppo, minorities faced severe persecution and violence. Christians, Kurds, and other groups were subjected to abductions, killings, forced conversions, and displacement. ISIS also imposed brutal punishments and destroyed cultural and religious heritage sites.

These atrocities, labeled as crimes against humanity, forced many minorities to flee their homes in search of safety.

Türkiye acting carefully to ensure Daesh/ISIS, PKK terrorists do not exploit post-regime Syria: Foreign minister

Hakan Fidan urges all actors in region, elsewhere to act calmly, with care, stressing that region must not be dragged into further instability

Serdar Dincel |08.12.2024 - TRT/AA

ISTANBUL

Türkiye is acting carefully to ensure that Daesh/ISIS and PKK terrorists do not exploit the situation in post-Assad regime Syria, Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said on Sunday.

During the over decade-long Syrian civil war, both terrorist groups have used the lack of an effective administration to have free reign, with the PKK/YPG seeking to establish a terrorist corridor along the border with Türkiye, and Turkish troops deployed to prevent that threat.

Stressing that Turkish officials are in contact with their US counterparts, Fidan urged all actors in the region and elsewhere to act calmly and carefully, as the region must not be dragged into further instability.

Stressing that Türkiye places great importance on Syria's national unity, sovereignty, and territorial integrity, Fidan stated the Syrian state institutions must be protected and the opposition forces must immediately unite.

The Syrian people will reshape their country's future, he said, adding that millions of Syrians who had to leave their country during the long civil war can now return.

Stating that Türkiye will continue to work with Syria's new administration, using everything it has together with regional neighbors to rebuild the country, Fidan said that they have no information on the whereabouts of ousted Syrian President Bashar Assad, adding that he might be abroad.

Since the capital Damascus on Sunday came under the control of anti-regime forces, there have been rumors that Assad fled, but nothing has been confirmed.

Road to Assad regime collapse

After a long period of relative calm, clashes broke out between Assad regime forces and anti-regime armed groups on Nov. 27 in rural areas west of Aleppo, a major city in northern Syria.

On Nov. 30, anti-regime groups took control of most of the center of Aleppo from regime forces, and on the same day, they gained control over the entire Idlib province. Last Thursday, after fierce clashes, the groups took the city center of Hama from regime forces.

Anti-regime groups captured some settlements in the strategically important province of Homs, a gateway to the capital Damascus, and started to advance there.

On Friday, armed opposition groups launched an operation in the Daraa province on Syria's border with Jordan and recaptured the city center from the regime forces after clashes.

On Saturday, the entire province of Suwayda in southern Syria also came under the control of opposition groups. On the same day, local opposition groups in Quneitra also took control of the provincial center.

In the province of Homs, which leads to the capital, anti-regime forces took control of the provincial center on Saturday.

Groups advancing against Assad regime forces entered the southern suburbs of Damascus later on Saturday. Regime forces also withdrew from the Defense and Interior ministries and the international airport in Damascus.

As anti-regime armed groups started to dominate the capital, the Assad regime on Sunday morning quickly lost all control of Damascus.

Separately, in Operation Dawn of Freedom launched by the opposition Syrian National Army against the terrorist organization PKK/YPG in rural areas of Aleppo on Dec.1, the Tel Rifaat district center was liberated from terrorism.


*Writing by Serdar Dincel

Millions of displaced Syrians ‘can return’ home: Turkish FM

By Turkish Minute
December 8, 2024

Syrians displaced by years of civil war can now return home, Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said on Sunday after Islamist-led rebels declared they had taken Damascus, Agence France-Presse reported.

Ousted President Bashar al-Assad is “probably outside of Syria”, Fidan said when asked in Qatar about Assad’s whereabouts and whether his life might be in danger. On Saturday, Fidan met at the Doha Forum with his counterparts from Assad allies Iran and Russia.

The “Assad regime collapsed and control of the country is changing hands”, Fidan said at the Doha Forum in Qatar, adding that “this didn’t happen overnight. For the last 13 years, the country has been in turmoil” since civil war began with Assad’s repression of democracy protests in 2011.

“Millions of Syrians who were forced to leave their homes can return to their land,” Fidan said, adding that it was “time to unite and reconstruct the country”.

Fidan said that any new government in Syria must not threaten neighboring nations.

Fidan said Turkey had worked with Syrians and regional and international actors to “assure the regional countries that the new administration and new Syria will not pose a threat for its neighbors, on the contrary, the new Syria will address the existing problems, will eliminate the threats”.

Turkey’s foreign minister said Ankara has been in contact with rebels in Syria to ensure the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) group and the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) cannot expand there after anti-government forces took Damascus.

“We have to be watchful during this transition period,” Fidan said. “We have communication with the groups to make sure that terrorist organizations, especially Daesh and PKK, is not taking advantage of the situation.”

The role of Turkey in the toppling of Syria's Assad by Islamist rebels

08:02

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz during their meeting at the presidential office in Dolmabahce, Istanbul, on October 19, 2024. 

© Turkish Presidency Press Office, AFP

Issued on: 08/12/2024 

Turkey has stated its support for Syria’s territorial integrity: the last thing it wants is a Kurdish-controlled autonomous region on its border. Ankara has conducted several incursions into Syria since 2016 with the aim of pushing back the Islamic State group or Kurdish militants and creating a buffer zone along its border. What consequence does Trump's election have on the situation? Details with Scott Lucas, Professor of US and international politics at University College Dublin, UK.

SYRIAN  KURDISTAN

Autonomous Administration: We are ready for dialogue with all parties

In a statement about the fall of the regime in Syria, the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria said that they are ready for dialogue with all parties for the construction of the new process.


ANF
RAQQA
Sunday, 8 December 2024

Following the fall of the Assad regime in Syria earlier today, the Democratic Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria made a statement in front of the Autonomous Administration building in Raqqa.

‘The regime ignored the national and cultural identities of Syrians’

Speaking here, Autonomous Administration Executive Council Co-Chair Evin Siwêd stated the following: “First of all, we congratulate all the Syrian people on the fall of the cruel Syrian regime and salute our people who sacrificed their most precious values for freedom and equality. After 14 years of struggle and conflict, the cruel Syrian regime has fallen with all its institutions and army. This regime ignored the national and cultural identities of Syrians, pursued a policy contrary to democratic forces and denied the rights of the Syrian people. Based on nationalism, religion and sectarianism, it caused Syria's plight. It has caused the death of hundreds of thousands of people and the displacement of millions of Syrians. As the components of North and East Syria, where our regions suffered the most oppression, we have lost thousands of martyrs in the defence of our people and experienced countless violations of our rights.

‘The unstable regime is the cause of what is currently happening in Syria’

In the past years of the revolution, despite all local and international efforts to find a peaceful solution to the Syrian problems, the regime continued its exclusionary policies and avoided serious and constructive dialogue. It was based on a policy of buying time to pave the way for the wider escalation of the Syrian crisis. This unstable regime is the cause of what is currently happening in Syria. As the Democratic Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria, during the crisis years, we provided every opportunity to achieve a peaceful solution to the problems in Syria, but the Syrian regime did not respond to these efforts and is therefore responsible.

‘We will work to preserve the integrity of the Syrian territory’

We declare that we are committed to the measures we have worked on in the past. As a part of the structure and geography of Syria, we will work to preserve the unity of the Syrian people and the integrity of the Syrian territory. We will use the language of peaceful dialogue to solve the problems in Syria without excluding any side. We affirm that we will play a leading role in building a democratic and diverse Syria that guarantees the rights of all Syrian people without discrimination.

‘Let us turn this phase into a new page’

We call on all political forces in Syria to take the past into account, learn from it, and work to free the country from this scourge. Let us turn this phase into a new page where we can cooperate together to reach agreements that will serve the interests of the entire Syrian people. As the Democratic Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria, we are ready for dialogue, and we extend our hand to all parts of Syria to draw the signs of the future Syria together.”

Manbij administration: Don't believe Turkish propaganda lies

The Manbij canton administrators denied the statements that the city was abandoned, saying such rumors were deliberately spread by the Turkish state.


NAZIM DAŞTAN
MANBIJ
Sunday, 8 December 2024, 12:02

The Manbij Military Council is responding harshly to the attacks carried out by the Syrian National Army (SNA) gang groups affiliated with Turkey against Manbij.

Violent clashes are taking place on the Manbij-Aleppo and Manbij-Bab lines, which are being bombed with heavy weapons.

While the infiltration attempts of the SNA groups on the northern, western and southern fronts of the city are being repelled one by one, the Manbij Democratic Autonomous Canton Administration has responded to the propaganda lies spread in recent days.

Canton administrators Ebu Şêxo Mihemed and Xalid Bekro, told ANF that there is the perception of a special war developed in the city within the scope of a systematic plan inconsistent with the reality of Manbij.

Both administrators stated that the information that the city was abandoned and left was a result of the special war developed by the Turkish state, and that the people of Manbij were weaving their common life on the one hand and resisting the war on the other.

Manbij Military Council reports fierce clashes at the entrance of the city

Manbij Military Council reported that fierce clashes were taking place on 3 fronts of the city, stressing that: “Shoulder to shoulder with the people of Manbij, we will repel these attacks.”


ANF
MANBIJ
Sunday, 8 December 2024


The Press Centre of the Manbij Military Council made a written statement regarding the escalated attacks by the Turkish state and affiliated gangs.

The statement pointed out that the gangs have carried out dozens of attacks on Manbij with the air support provided by the occupying Turkish state in the last 12 days.

“All of these attacks have been repelled by the forces of the Manbij and Bab Military Councils,” it added.



The statement said: “The gangs have increased the intensity of their attacks on all fronts of Manbij in the last two days. Currently, fierce clashes are taking place between our fighters and gangs, from the Togar front to Ewn Dadat, Arab Hasan and Erîma fronts.

This afternoon, some of the gang groups advanced towards the southern entrance of the city, accompanied by air support and armoured vehicles provided to the gangs by the occupying Turkish state. The gangs, however, encountered the ambush tactics of our forces. In order to put psychological pressure on the people, some gang cells mobilised inside the city to spread fear and chaos. Currently, fierce clashes are continuing at the entrance of the city.

The Manbij Military Council, as a structure that has sacrificed thousands of martyrs to protect the region from all kinds of terrorist organisations, maintains its trust in its fighters. Shoulder to shoulder with the people of Manbij, it will repel these attacks as in the fight against ISIS and gangs.”

US will remain in eastern Syria and seek to prevent IS resurgence: Pentagon

Reuters 

Syrian Kurds celebrate next to the destroyed statue of late President Hafez al-Assad, father of Syria’s President Bashar al-Assad, as they celebrate the fall of capital Damascus to anti-government fighters, in the city of Qamishli on December 8, 2024. Photo: AFP

MANAMA: The United States will maintain its presence in eastern Syria and will take measures necessary to prevent a resurgence of Islamic State, Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for the Middle East Daniel Shapiro said on Sunday.

Speaking hours after Syrian rebels announced they had toppled Bashar al-Assad’s government, Shapiro called on all parties to protect civilians, particularly minorities, and to respect international norms.

“We are aware that the chaotic and dynamic circumstances on the ground in Syria could give ISIS space to find the ability to become active, to plan external operations, and we’re determined to work with those partners to continue to degrade their capabilities,” he told the Manama Dialogue security conference in Bahrain’s capital.

Syrian rebels say they have toppled Assad in state television announcement

“(We’re determined) to ensure (Islamic State’s) enduring defeat, to ensure the secure detention of ISIS fighters and the repatriation of displaced persons,” Shapiro added.

Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), which spearheaded the rebel advances across western Syria, was formerly an al Qaeda affiliate known as the Nusra Front until its leader, Abu Mohammed al-Golani, severed ties with the global jihadist movement in 2016.

Western governments, which have shunned the Assad-led state for years, must decide how to deal with a new administration in which HTS looks set to have influence. HTS is a globally designated terrorist group.

Syrian opposition launches attack on Kurdish-led forces in Manbij

2024-12-08 



Shafaq News/ Syrian opposition forces launched an attack on Kurdish-led fighters in the northern city of Manbij on Saturday, as part of a broader campaign following territorial gains against Syrian regime forces in recent weeks.

Two statements attributed to the “Operation Room of the Dawn of Freedom” affiliated with a group identifying itself as the "Ministry of Defense of the Syrian Interim Government" were posted on X and dated December 7.

In the first statement, addressed to civilians in Manbij and surrounding villages, the Syrian National Army declared its intention to "liberate the city of Manbij from the separatist PKK terrorist group."

The statement accused the group of occupying the city and committing acts of terrorism against civilians of various affiliations and nationalities.

The message reassured Kurdish residents that the operation aimed to dismantle the separatist project in northern Syria, asserting, "You can live with the rest of the Syrian people in freedom and dignity in this homeland that accommodates all its sons." Civilians were advised to remain in their homes and avoid military sites to ensure their safety during the ongoing operations.


بيان إلى أهلنا المدنيين في مدينة منبج#وزارة_الدفاع pic.twitter.com/rvfqbVNQkO— وزارة الدفاع في الحكومة السورية المؤقتة (@MfDefen) December 8, 2024

A second statement targeted military personnel associated with the Syrian regime and the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) in Manbij. It called on them to surrender their weapons and distance themselves from what the statement referred to as the "black fate" awaiting them at the hands of opposition forces.

Contact numbers were provided for those wishing to surrender.


إلى جميع العسكريين من قوات النظام وميليشيا قسد الإرهابية في مدينة منبج المحتلة الراغبين بالقاء السلاح وتحييد أنفسهم عن المصير الأسود الذي ينتظرهم في الميدان أمام أبطال الجيش الوطني السوري، التواصل على الأرقام التالية عبر تطبيق الواتس آب لإجراء التسوية قبل فوات الآوان...… pic.twitter.com/lpQrRz9ESo— وزارة الدفاع في الحكومة السورية المؤقتة (@MfDefen) December 8, 2024

This attack comes in the wake of intensifying clashes between Syrian regime forces and opposition factions that began on November 27 in the western countryside of Aleppo. The opposition swiftly captured major territories, including Aleppo, Idlib, Hama, Daraa, Sweida, and Homs, culminating in the takeover of Damascus.

SYRIAN KURDISTAN

Today is the day to protect and defend Rojava

All the peoples of North and East Syria should join the YPG, YPJ and the Self-Defence Forces in a spirit of mobilisation to protect their values and their lands. The friends of the Kurdish people should stand by the people of North and East Syria.


FIRAT DİCLE
NEWS DESK
Saturday, 7 December 2024

The fascist and invading Turkish state wants to massacre the Kurdish people and eliminate the Kurdish gains with the occupation operation launched under the name of ‘Dawn of Freedom’ on 27 November, on the day of the founding of the PKK, against Aleppo, the second largest and historical city of Syria, and Til Rifet and Shehba, where the displaced people of Afrin migrated and have been living for 6 years despite all the attacks.

27 November is a milestone day of rebirth for the Kurds as a people. It is a day considered sacred for the Kurds. It is a day when the Kurdish people reawakened and rose up with their national reality. For this reason, the fascist Turkish state also chooses this day especially. It wants to massacre the Kurdish people on 27 November, the day when the Kurdish people wake up with national consciousness. To this end, he ordered an invasion operation under the name of ‘Dawn of Freedom’ to the HTS and FSA gangs, which he trained, equipped, provided with logistical, material, moral, military and many aspects of support for years. On such a day, the fascist-occupying Turkish state started a massacre through these gangs against the peoples living in North and East Syria, especially the Kurdish people, who organise and govern themselves around the paradigm and philosophy of Leader Apo (Abdullah Öcalan).

The fascist Turkish state carries out massacre campaigns against the Kurdish people on historical, important and holy days for the Kurdish people. This attack launched by the fascist Turkish state on 27 November must be interpreted in this way. However, it is also necessary to see the backdrop of this invasion and massacre campaign, that is, the forces that gave the green light. In other words, it is necessary to see the forces that pave the way for the fascist Turkish state to act openly.

For this, it is necessary to take a good look at the equation of Israel, Britain, America, Russia and Iran. As is known, Israel entered into a war with Hamas in October 2023. Then it experienced a conflict with Lebanese Hezbollah. As we know it, Hezbollah and Hamas have been supported by Iran both in terms of military power transfer and logistics, weapons and ammunition. When this is the case, Israel was pushed, both militarily and politically, by the world public opinion, and sought to take advantage of the process by making a ceasefire with Hezbollah. In other words, it wanted to wage the war in Syria through Turkey and the gangs affiliated with Turkey. Its aim was both to cut the supply routes to Lebanon from Iraq and Iran and to destroy the Iranian presence in Syria by striking a blow to the Iranian Shiite forces in Syria, or at least to reduce it to an ineffective level. Because of this, these gangs were provided with support by the fascist Turkish state and an operation was launched against Aleppo, Shehba, Til Rifat and Hama lines.

The US and the UK, by remaining silent in the face of the attacks on these places where Russia and Iran are especially dominant, paved the way for this operation, which was developed in co-operation with Turkey-Israel. In this framework, America and Britain wanted to make Turkey and Iran confront each other through gangs and militias and to enable Israel to recover itself in this process. At the same time, they pulled Turkey away from the Russian line and integrated it into NATO. The implication ‘Turkey betrayed us’, expressed in the statements of Iran and Russia after this operation, shows that this situation has been realised in the most obvious way.

In addition, in order for the realisation of the map drawn by Britain and America for the Middle East at the NATO meeting in the centenary year of Lausanne, Syria, Iraq, Iran and Turkey must be messed up and the borders must be redrawn because the borders were not exactly as desired due to the ‘nations’ right to self-determination’ following the October Revolution that followed the First World War and because Israel was supposed to be established after the First World War. Turkey, Iraq and Syria had to be reconstituted within this framework. However, it did not work out the way they wanted. And within this framework, it was established after the Second World War. Besides, the world was bipolar at that time. On one side was Soviet Russia and on the other side was NATO. Therefore, the borders could not be determined within the desired framework. However, after the collapse of Soviet Russia in 1991, the USA ignited the fuse of the Third World War by conducting an operation in the Gulf. Chaos, crisis and wars were given rise to in the Middle East for the creation of the Greater Middle East Initiative, which was put forward under the name of the protection and growth of Israel in the Middle East and the seizure of Middle Eastern energy resources.

In the early 2000s, Iraq, where the first nation state was established, was torn apart by war. After 2010, with the chaos initiated in Libya and Syria under the name of the Arab Spring, Syria was disintegrated and turned into a zone of conflict. For this reason, the NATO meeting held on the centenary of Lausanne was an update of the First World War. For this purpose, a new map was presented at this meeting and in order to realise this map, the region was intended to be stirred up by some proxy forces.

When the fascist chief Erdoğan came to power in 2002, he was appointed as co-chairman of this Greater Middle East Initiative and acted within the framework of this purpose. Together with Bahçeli, the deep state mind, he has acted within this framework until today and done everything he could to massacre the Kurdish people and destroy their gains. In this context, on 27 November, which is an important and sacred day for Kurds, he launched the invasion operation against North and East Syria as a whole, especially Aleppo, Shehba, Til Rifet, with the HTS and FSA gangs affiliated to him. And then, Manbij, Til Temir and Rojava were targeted by increased attacks as a whole. As a result, hundreds of thousands of Kurds are under the threat of a massacre in Shehba, Til Rifet and Aleppo.

For this reason, all the peoples of North and East Syria, especially our people living in Rojava, must protect their values and lands by joining the YPG, YPJ and Self-Defence Forces in the spirit of mobilisation declared by the Autonomous Administration. In addition, the Kurdish people, their friends, socialist and democratic circles living in Northern Kurdistan, Southern Kurdistan, Eastern Kurdistan and all over the world should stand by the resistance of the people of North and East Syria in an internationalist and solidarity spirit. They should support the people of Rojava. In response to the attacks of the fascist Turkish state, they should embrace the Rojava resistance wherever they are, flow into this revolution that has been developed for 13 years and take their place in the resistance. In this context, it is necessary to respond to the call for mobilisation of the Rojava Autonomous Administration with support and participation. Today is the day to protect the revolution and enhance the resistance.

PJAK calls on peoples to rise up in the spirit of the Kobanê resistance

In a statement regarding the attacks of the occupying Turkish state and gangs, PJAK warned of a dangerous plan and called for peoples to rise up in the spirit of Kobanê resistance.


ANF
NEWS DESK
Wednesday, 4 December 2024, 15:46

The Kurdistan Free Life Party (Partiya Jiyana Azad a Kurdistanê-PJAK) made a written statement regarding the attacks of the invading Turkish state and affiliated gangs on North-East Syria.

Condemning the attacks, PJAK pointed out that the aim of the invaders is to change the demographic structure of Rojava and to eliminate the Autonomous Administration and called on the peoples of Rojava and Syria to stand up.

The PJAK statement emphasised that the Turkish state and affiliated gangs want to massacre the peoples of the region and underlined that a comprehensive and dangerous plan is being made. “Erdoğan is trying to defeat the Democratic Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria by bringing together gang groups from different countries because he knows that it will lead to the freedom of the local people.”

PJAK also condemned the silence of the international powers and emphasised that this silence enables the continuation and deepening of the war. Recalling the resistance in Kobanê, PJAK called on the international community to support the struggle of the people of Syria and Rojava. PJAK also drew attention to the fact that groups such as Al-Qaeda and ISIS in Syria are getting stronger with the support of Turkey and that this poses a great threat to the Kurds as well as to the Arab, Chaldean and other peoples in Syria.

The statement continued: “The escalation of the fires of the Third World War in Syria is due to the development of al-Qaeda and ISIS groups supported by Turkey. Undoubtedly, this situation will pose a danger for the entire Middle East and therefore an international position is needed.

Turkey's war in Syria, where it is trying to turn Aleppo, like Raqqa, into a place where the Tahrir al-Sham government and other sects live, is not only against the Kurds in Rojava, but also against all parts of Kurdistan and all humanity. The main aim of this plan is to change the demography and destroy the Rojava Autonomous Administration. International powers and states are once again trying to victimise Kurds while designing the Middle East. If our people are vigilant and support the Freedom Movement, this scenario could once again come to naught. If they trust their people and their will, they will win and finalise the struggle.

If our people are united as at the time of the Kobanê resistance, our people will win another victory like Kobanê against the gangs of the Turkish state. We call on all our people and friends in Kurdistan and Europe to support the people of Rojava. The preservation of Rojava's status is of great importance for humanity. The destruction plan of the fascist Turkish state must once again be frustrated.”

UK

Peace in Kurdistan stands with Kurds and insists that freedom must prevail

Peace in Kurdistan condemned the raid on the Kurdish Community Centre in London.


ANF
LONDON
Sunday, 8 December 2024, 


Peace in Kurdistan issued a statement in solidarity with Kurds under attack in London.

The statement said: "On 27th November armed units of the Metropolitan Police raided the homes of Kurdish community leaders and the Kurdish Community Centre (KCC) in North London. The raids provoked outrage among the community and exacerbated tensions between the Kurds and the authorities. The KCC building in Haringey was surrounded by armed police and forcibly shut down for over a week while police smashed down doors and conducted a rigorous search for undisclosed items.

Sweeping powers under UK anti-terrorism legislation were used to permit this frightening public display of brute force by police and authorities.

The Kurds have been rightly outraged and feel aggrieved that they are being unjustly persecuted once again."

Peace in Kurdistan is "deeply dismayed at news of these incidents and believes that this criminalisation of an entire community must be brought to an end. Such abuses of power are a stain on our democracy and an affront to our sense of decency. By pushing the Kurds to the margins of society we perpetuate the historic injustices that have been inflicted on them throughout their tragic history.

The targeting of vulnerable communities is always a dangerous course of action for any state to embark upon and it can only have negative consequences such as exacerbating social tensions."

The statement added: "The Kurds are a minority community within our country and as such are easily vulnerable to discrimination. Misreporting of their activities and the fostering of deliberate misinformation about them crudely exploits these vulnerabilities. This puts them at serious risk of abuse and attack from groups of individuals with ill intent and whose ignorance can quickly be transformed into acts of hatred and physical violence against individual Kurds and their institutions.

The raid on the KCC, widely reported in the media, has fostered a negative impression among the wider public of Kurdish misbehaviour and what activities actually take place at the centre. People with no direct personal experiences of dealing with the centre or who have no contacts with Kurdish people at all would easily be misled into concluding that the centre was a haunt of criminal activities and anti-social behaviour that poses a direct threat to our security and wellbeing. The KCC’s activities are far more mundane, such as providing advice on welfare, healthcare and education."

The statement continued: "These erroneous negative impressions, although a grotesque travesty of reality, are an inevitable direct byproduct of the unjust targeting of the Kurds over many years and of which the recent armed police raid is only the latest manifestation. The Metropolitan Police and the authorities under which the police conduct their actions surely have a lot to answer for.

An enormous contribution

The Kurds have contributed enormously to the enrichment of our culture and way of life in the areas where they have become well established, setting up thriving businesses and admired for their music and lively cultural festivals, where people of all backgrounds are warmly welcomed. As such the Kurds are deserving of our respect, not punishment.

The Green Lanes area of North London where the KCC has for decades been located has become renowned for its restaurants and cafes which attract customers from across the capital and beyond who flock to enjoy the rich Mediterranean dishes. The Kurds are a generous and welcoming people who simply love to share with others their history and culture. Many who strike up relationships with Kurds feel that they have made friends for life."

Peace in Kurdistan underlined that "the criminalisation of the Kurds by aggressive policing that is state sanctioned flies in the face of all the positive steps that have been taken over the years to build community cohesion and friendships across communities to enable people to live amicably together within the great multicultural metropolis that we all share and proudly call our home.

It looks that tremendous damage has been done by the latest police raids and we fear it will take years and enormous efforts to build bridges and assuage the widespread fears and suspicions that have been instilled within the Kurdish community. "

What needs to be done

The statement continued: "The roots of the problem are twofold and need to be addressed seriously and urgently by our politicians: these are, first of all, the UK anti-terrorism legislation that unfairly criminalises communities such as the Kurds, who have set up home in the UK after fleeing political persecution in their homeland and which puts under suspicion all their activities for as long as their political situation stays unresolved. Second and related, is the UK’s approach towards Turkey and that country’s conflict with the Kurds that has festered since the establishment of the Turkish Republic (now Republic of Türkiye) over a century ago.

Around 20 percent of Turkey’s population is of Kurdish origin, but they have been ruthlessly marginalised, endured decades of brutal persecution and denied even elementary political rights and treated as second class citizens at best. Their voices have been forcibly silenced, their elected representatives and chosen leaders have been arrested and systematically suppressed.

In fleeing to the UK, most Kurds will have assumed that they could enjoy the rights and freedoms long denied them in their country of origin. Such brutal police action as occurred in the last few days is a cruel reminder of the treatment that they and their families will have endured in Turkey in past years.

We demand a full investigation into the raid.

The Kurdish community has a right to know the full facts as to why they have been targeted once more.

Nothing less than a full investigation will be needed into the circumstances surrounding the police raid on the KCC, including what appears to have been the very heavy-handed conduct of the raids on the community centre itself and on several other private residences that were subject to raids. Worrying reports into how individuals, including families with children, were mistreated by armed police appear to suggest that brute force was used against men and women who were not even attempting to resist arrest."

Peace in Kurdistan said: "We understand that the individuals who were detained in the raids are respected community leaders, including individuals who had suffered years of political persecution in Turkey.

This unwarranted attack on the Kurdish community demonstrates clearly that Peace in Kurdistan has been absolutely correct to campaign for a just political solution to the Kurdish conflict.

We remain convinced that this unresolved conflict acts like a festering wound and is a blight on our society and has profound consequences for how governments conduct their affairs and on the relations between peoples and nations.

We call on the Home Secretary to conduct a full open investigation into the circumstances surrounding the raid and to return the properties that were confiscated from the KCC and elsewhere.

We demand an end to the criminalisation of the Kurdish community and their institutions. "

The statement pointed out that "the unjust anti-terrorism legislation that criminalises the Kurds and peaceful political activities should be repealed from the UK’s statute book.

The UK Government needs to urgently review its foreign policy approach towards Turkey and the Kurds and to take concrete steps to help bring about a political resolution to the Kurdish conflict by acknowledging the fundamental rights of the Kurdish people to freedom and self-determination in line with international law."

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