International Day of Solidarity with Kobanî (November 1)

One year after the clashes with “Islamic State”, which caused many victims, and the subsequent attempts to drive back the terrorist militia, the inhabitants of the Syrian Kurdish city Kobanî are still in great danger. On the occasion of the International Day of Solidarity with Kobanî (November 1), the Society for Threatened Peoples (STP) accuses Turkey of attacking Kurdish defense positions on the other side of the border. “A year ago, Ankara decided to support – or at least tolerate – the radical Islamists. Now, the Turkish government has ordered the army to attack Kobanî to weaken the Kurds and to gain control of the settlements,” the human rights organization criticizes. Moreover, Turkey is responsible for the difficult situation of the approximately 150,000 civilians who have now returned to Kobanî: Due to the blockade, the people are running out of food, medicines and drinking water.

IS was driven out of Kobanî, but could turn against the city again any time in case the Kurdish resistance is weakened. About 1,000 to 1,500 Kurdish fighters and about 500 civilians have lost their lives in the Battle of Kobanî – and around 5,000 were injured and had to be treated in makeshift hospitals or in the Kurdish communities in neighboring Turkey. “Again, the Turkish authorities have refused to treat Kurdish people in Turkey. Often, wounded fighters had to wait at the border crossing for days,” criticizes the STP. Almost all of the approximately 400,000 inhabitants of the city and the Kobanî region fled during the fighting. Every week, about 1000 people return from the refugee camps or private accommodations in the primarily Kurdish-inhabited south-east of Turkey – despite the catastrophic conditions. Many, however, have also fled to Europe. As an STP-informant stated, about 80 percent of the city is destroyed. There are only two makeshift hospitals, one civilian and one military. The border crossing from Turkey to Kobanî opens about twice a week and only for returnees.

The International Day of Solidarity with Kobanî was first celebrated on November 1, 2014. Exiled Kurds and their friends in Europe, America, Asia, Africa and Australia – including the Society for Threatened Peoples and other organizations – had called for support on behalf of the citizens of Kobanî. The IS-militias had already tried to take the northern Syrian city at the end of 2013, but they were fought back by the Kurdish People’s Protection Units (YPG). In Mid-September 2014, the IS started a major offensive, followed by an attack on the actual city on September 28. After months of fierce and bloody house-to-house-fighting, the United States supported the PYG with weapons and air support. The Turkish government did not provide any help for the besieged until early November. Finally, following international pressure, Ankara allowed 150 Kurdish Peshmerga fighters from Iraqi Kurdistan to travel to Kobanî to support the defense with heavy weapons.

Header Photo: Freedom House via Flickr