Tag Archives: Turkey
Ocalan had a phone call with his brother
Abdullah Ocalan, jailed leader of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), has spoken on the phone with his brother for a “short” time after nearly a year of no contact, according to a statement from his lawyers. The news follows recent rumours that Ocalan had died in jail. Without naming his brother, Asrin Law Office, which […]
Human Rights Watch urges Turkey not to expel pro-Kurdish parliamentarian
Human Rights Watch (HRW) called on Turkey not to remove a pro-Kurdish deputy from his seat in parliament. It’s expected that the Turkish government will strip Omer Faruk Gergerlioglu of his parliamentary status on Wednesday and jail him. Gergerlioglu, a member of parliament for the pro-Kurdish Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) representing Kocaeli province in western […]
Why is Syrian military deploying in Kurdish-held areas?
The Syrian government seeks to strengthen its military presence in Ain Issa and the area overlooking the M4 international highway, which are under control of the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces. ALEPPO, Syria — The Syrian government, with the support of Russia, is trying to boost its military presence in the areas of northeastern Syria controlled […]
The Takeaway: US-Turkey strains worsening over Syrian Kurds amid fresh Erdogan complaints
Turkish president questions US-Turkey NATO alliance, while Iran expands influence in eastern Syria; Erdogan (again) accuses US of acting with terrorists in Syria What kind of alliance is this? Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has, for the second time this month, accused the United States of siding with terrorists in Syria. Reacting to a tweet […]
Ethnic cleansing in Afrin: The case of the city of Rajo
Since its invasion of the Syrian Kurdish canton of Afrin in March 2018, Turkey has carried out ethnic cleansing of this territory north of Aleppo. Before this invasion, the canton had a population of about 300,000 inhabitants, nearly 98% Kurds and it also hosted, according to UN statistics, 125,000 internally displaced persons, mostly Kurds fleeing […]
How the NY Times whitewashed Turkey’s human rights record in Syria
By Syrians for Truth and Justice The New York Times recently published an article about Turkey’s role protecting civilians in the areas it controls in Syria’s Afrin region. For many Americans, this will be the most recent, if not the only, news they hear about Afrin. However, the article offers an unbalanced portrait of the […]
Khazali: Turkey seeks to attack Shangal
Leader of the Asaib Ahel al-Haq, Qais Khazali said that plans are being hatched by Turkey to launch an attack on Shengal in summer, calling on the Iraqi Federal Government to take the necessary procedures in this regard. On January 22nd, 2021, Erdogan threatened to carried out an attack on the Shengal Province, saying: […]
Turkey hits Kurds in northern Syria with a cruel weapon: water
Water disruptions in Hasakah spell more suffering for civilians unless Turkish forces withdraw from NE Syria Turkey’s stated aim of creating a safe zone along the border now entails cutting off water as a pressure tactic Near the town of Ras Al-Ain in Hasakah, in northeastern Syria, empty jerry cans were piled high on the […]
How Turkey’s government abuses – and uses – Kurdish groups
David Lepeska Despite near-constant change, the resurrection of Turkey’s primary political battles is never far away. A dozen years ago this month, long-frosty relations between the Turkish government and the country’s Kurdish nationalist movement enjoyed an early spring thaw. The pro-Kurdish Democratic Society Party (DTP) won the majority of seats in local elections in the […]
Could Turkey’s Kurdish peace process be back on track?
ANKARA: The debate around peace between Turkey and its Kurdish minority has re-surfaced, hinting at possible preparations by both sides to find middle ground to restart negotiations. Political changes, shifting voting intentions and trouble along the southern border with Iraq and Syria, experts suggest, might all be playing a part in moves by President Recep […]