“Erdoğan Wants to Bring All of Syria Under Turkish Control”

An interview with Îlham Ehmed

The fall of Bashar al-Assad’s regime has prompted a fresh power struggle in Syria. Îlham Ehmed, a foreign relations representative for the Kurdish-led autonomous region, spoke to Jacobin about Turkey’s bid to expand its control.

Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan delivering a speech in Ankara, Turkey, on June 9, 2020. (Adem Altan / AFP via Getty Images)

12.20.2024
JACOBIN

On December 8, Bashar al-Assad boarded a plane to Moscow. His flight marked the end of the Syrian Ba’ath Party and the end of over half a century of rule by the Assad family, who governed the country through torture and intense police surveillance. Since then, many Syrians have been searching for their abducted relatives, and mass graves have been found all over the country. It is estimated that 100,000 people have been arrested and tortured since 2013 alone; over 150,000 are still missing.

There is great joy at the end of the Assad regime, but this is also mixed with fear for the future. The country’s new rulers, the Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), have their roots in ISIS (the so-called Islamic State) and the Al-Nusra Front. Many other groups fear that oppression and repression will now continue under a new flag. These fears are particularly strong in the Democratic Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (DAANES).

A Kurdish-led, quasi-autonomous region, DAANES covers around a third of Syria’s territory and is still not officially recognized by anyone. It has advanced a unique democratic project and push for gender equality, and all positions in its autonomous administration are filled equally by men and women. But it also faces major challenges, in particular the war that Turkey has been waging against it for some years. Turkey launched its first military offensive on the ground in 2016 and has occupied the Afrîn region since 2018, as well as Serê Kaniyê and Girê Spî since 2018. Assad’s downfall has given new impetus to Turkey and the mercenaries it supports. There is currently even a threat of an attack on Kobanê, the city that more than any other symbolizes the fight against ISIS.

Îlham Ehmed is one of DAANES’s two representatives for foreign relations. Ehmed herself is Kurdish and was born in Afrîn. She has been campaigning for a democratic and pluralistic system in the region since 1990. Today she represents the self-administration on an international level and is a key figure for post-Assad Syria. In an interview with Justus Johannsen for Jacobin.de, she explains how the fall of Assad will affect the autonomous administration’s future.
Justus Johannsen

Ms Ehmed, as a Kurdish woman in Syria, you also suffered a lot under the dictator Bashar al-Assad. What does his downfall after thirteen years of war mean to you?
Îlham Ehmed

For years, the Ba’ath regime pursued a brutal policy against the Kurds, including their expropriation and expulsion from their villages in northern Syria, in favor of Arabs who were settled there. This was also known as the “Arab belt” policy. The Kurds were systematically excluded from political activity, and many of those who did engage in politics were arrested and tortured. One example of this repression is the massacre in the Qamişlo stadium on March 12, 2004, when the regime provoked a conflict between Arabs and Kurds, resulting in numerous deaths.The Turkish state is already presenting itself as in charge of Syria and giving instructions on what to do and what not to do.

The Ba’ath regime ignored Syria’s ethnic and religious diversity as well as women’s rights and relied on oppression. The overthrow of this regime was the goal of all Syrians, especially the Kurds, who were striving for freedom and democracy. But this joy is clouded by the current attacks by the Turkish state. Turkey is pursuing a very similar policy of expelling the Kurds and settling Sunni Arabs in the regions it occupies in northern Syria.
Justus Johannsen

Since the occupation of Afrîn by Turkey, the majority of the Kurdish population has been displaced. The Kurdish population fell from 97 percent to less than 35 percent. While armed Islamist groups such as HTS toppled the Assad regime, Turkey has now also begun directly attacking the areas of the DAANES. What is its aim?
Îlham Ehmed

Turkey used the developments in Syria to employ Islamist mercenaries under its control to attack the Til Rifat region, where tens of thousands of refugees from the Afrîn region, which has been occupied since 2018, are living. This led to the displacement of around 150,000 people, who were forced to flee to the self-governing areas east of the Euphrates. As a result, Turkey also attacked the city of Manbij with its mercenary Syrian National Army [SNA]. However, a cease-fire agreement, which provided for the withdrawal of all military units and the establishment of a civilian administration in Manbij, was broken by Turkey and has still not been implemented.

Kurds in particular, who make up around 30 percent of the population of Manbij, and those who were actively involved in the autonomous administration, were forced to flee as they were exposed to attacks by Turkish-sponsored mercenaries. There was looting, displacement, and war crimes. The attack on Manbij was not aimed at liberating the city from the Assad regime but was directed against the majority-Arab Manbij Military Council, which is part of the DAANES. This military council has been protecting the city from attacks by Turkey since its liberation from so-called Islamic State.
Justus Johannsen

What is Turkey’s goal in Syria?
Îlham Ehmed

The Turkish state’s goal is to bring the whole of Syria under its control. It is already presenting itself as the one in charge of Syria and giving instructions on what to do and what not to do. Turkey is now planning to use its Islamist mercenaries to conquer the remaining areas by force. As a NATO member, Turkey is acting in the region in accordance with NATO strategy. Although the US has attempted to resolve the conflict through dialogue, it is clear that Turkey rejects dialogue and is committed to war. It is therefore urgently necessary to take a clear stance against Turkey’s occupation policy and destabilization of the region.
Justus Johannsen

Is an attack on Kobanê and other areas now imminent?
Îlham Ehmed

Yes, the Turkish state’s attacks on Kobanê are continuing, the electricity and water supply has been interrupted and the civilian population there is exposed to great danger. The Turkish state is clearly preparing for an attack on Kobanê, while the population and the Kurdish-Arab-Christian alliance Syrian Democratic Forces [SDF] are making intensive preparations to defend the city. Kobanê is the symbol of the resistance against ISIS and therefore these attacks by the Turkish state must be prevented at all costs.
Justus Johannsen

There are reports of displacement and attacks on the civilian population by SNA mercenaries. What is the humanitarian situation on the ground? How is the local government dealing with the situation?
Îlham Ehmed

Exactly, the SNA is known for its abuses and war crimes. The situation of the civilian population is very bad, as they were surprised by the attacks and had to leave all their belongings behind when they were forced to flee to the areas east of the Euphrates, for fear of the atrocities committed by the Islamist mercenaries. Many of the refugees are now living in the school buildings of the autonomous administration, which has also brought school operations to a partial standstill.

At the same time, there are already many refugees from the Turkish-occupied areas in the areas of autonomous administration in north-eastern Syria, as well as those who have sought refuge here due to the war in Lebanon. We therefore urgently need help to cope with this humanitarian crisis in the face of winter conditions and, in particular, to meet the basic needs of children and the elderly.
Justus Johannsen

At the same time, you are still holding tens of thousands of ISIS supporters in the autonomous areas.
Îlham Ehmed

Yes, there are still around 12,000 so-called Islamic State supporters in the prisons of the autonomous administration, added to their relatives in various camps. The attacks by Turkey naturally exacerbate the danger they pose. Recently, there have been increasing reports of breakout and revolt attempts inside and outside the camps and prisons, and the activities and attacks by ISIS sleeper cells are also on the rise. The operations of the international coalition and the SDF against ISIS are therefore continuing. Yet the threat posed by ISIS, motivated by Turkey’s attacks, remains huge. We are also in a very tense security situation because we are forced to move security personnel to the front line if the war expands. The spread of ISIS fighters poses an incalculable global threat.
Justus Johannsen

How was it possible for HTS to take over large parts of Syria in just eleven days? Didn’t that surprise you?
Îlham Ehmed

We knew that HTS was planning an offensive, but we assumed that they only wanted to take the areas up to the important M5 transportation route. Suddenly, we saw Aleppo, Hama, Homs, and even Damascus being taken after armed groups from the south of Syria joined the offensive. However, these developments were not the result of intense fighting, as the regime put up little resistance and Russia and Iran withdrew their support.The Turkish state and its secret services have long been trying to stir up fear among the Arab population and to provoke a Kurdish-Arab conflict in order to destabilize the region.

It seems that Russia’s capacity was weakened by the Ukraine war and had to withdraw troops from Syria. The Ba’athist regime did not listen to its people or its allies, and persisted in its position, which led to Russia and Iran backing out. Iran and its proxies have suffered heavy defeats in the wars in Gaza, Lebanon, and Yemen. In addition, the Iranian armed forces in Syria were bombed and severely weakened by Israel over a long period of time. As a result, Iran was no longer in a position to put up resistance. The regime was now isolated and could not fend off the attacks, which made it relatively easy for the HTS to capture these cities.
Justus Johannsen

What is behind the accusations that the SDF fired on protests by the Arab population in Raqqa, the former ISIS capital in Syria? Is the Kurdish-Arab alliance behind the self-government project not strong enough and now in danger of breaking up?
Îlham Ehmed

The situation is not what it seems. The Turkish state and its secret services have long been trying to stir up fear among the Arab population in the autonomous administration’s regions through manipulative propaganda and to provoke a Kurdish-Arab conflict in order to destabilize the region. We are countering this by seeking open dialogue and advocating joint democratic self-administration by the various population groups.

The recent events in Raqqa are an example of such provocations. During a rally to celebrate the fall of the regime and to welcome the flag of the Syrian revolution, armed men suddenly opened fire on the crowd, resulting in numerous injuries. The Turkish media immediately reported that the SDF had fired on the civilians. However, it later emerged that these men had been deliberately deployed as a provocation. They were arrested and the situation did not escalate as the people of Raqqa understood that the SDF or internal security forces would not simply fire on civilians.
Justus Johannsen

What do you think of the fact that the European Union and the German government are already discussing the return of refugees to Syria? Is a stabilization of the situation even in sight?
Îlham Ehmed

The situation in Syria is uncertain and there is an urgent need for an internal Syrian solution in which the Syrian people themselves decide on their future. A joint national committee involving all regions of Syria is needed to tackle the humanitarian crisis. A fair and transparent system for the distribution of humanitarian aid to the civilian population must be created. We believe that channeling humanitarian aid through the Turkish state in order to portray it as a generous donor is the wrong approach. If the German government and the EU instead advocate a fair and decentralized system, this would ensure that the aid actually reaches those in need.
Justus Johannsen

Abu Mohammad al-Julani, the leader of HTS, which is listed as a terrorist organization by the US and the EU, is a former member of ISIS in Iraq, but he has recently expressed tolerance toward Kurds and other minorities. What do you expect from the new interim government in Damascus?
Îlham Ehmed

It remains to be seen how serious this stance is and whether it will be implemented. The transitional government led by HTS must not become the new regime. A new transitional government must be created that includes Sunnis, Kurds, Christian Arameans, Armenians, Druze, Alawites, and all population groups in Syria, especially women. This is the only way to prepare elections and a new constitution in line with Syria’s social diversity. Regardless of Julani’s background, these principles must apply to a democratic future for Syria.The transitional government led by HTS must not become the new regime.

The regime in Idlib is unacceptable. In particular, the misogynistic attitude of the HTS, which wants to impose head coverings on women, is incompatible with our ideas. Positive statements toward the Kurds must now be put into practice. Kurdish refugees from Turkish-occupied Afrîn must be able to return to their homes, while the Arab population from Ghouta, Idlib, and Daraa, who have been resettled there, should also return. The new transitional government is responsible for this.
Justus Johannsen

The autonomous administration of North and East Syria has now announced a ten-point plan in which it invites all Syrian actors to a joint political dialogue in Syria. What do you think is needed for a peaceful and democratic future in Syria?
Îlham Ehmed

Many are now talking about democracy and peace in Syria, but we need clear principles on how to get there. The autonomous administration initiative in North and East Syria aims above all to create the basis for an honest dialogue on solutions. In our region, the autonomous administration has so far been able to ensure the protection and provision of basic needs for five million people. With the experience we have gained through democratic self-governance, we can also support other regions of Syria.

The achievements of peaceful coexistence between different communities, direct democracy, and, in particular, women’s freedom are unparalleled in the region. In military matters, too, we have always shown our willingness to become part of the Syrian army with the SDF, including the women’s [protection] units of the YPJ, and to live up to our responsibility for the right to self-determination of all the peoples of Syria. Our initiative of the ten-point plan of our autonomous administration aims to reach an all-Syrian agreement, and for us, joint dialogue is the most important basis for this.

Contributors

Îlham Ehmed is cochair of the Department of Foreign Relations of the Democratic Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (DAANES).

Justus Johannsen is an activist who writes on social movements and international conflicts.