INSTITUT KURDDE PARIS E Information and liaison bulletin N° 403 OCTOBER 2018 The publication of this Bulletin enjoys a subsidy from the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs & Ministry of Culture This bulletin is issued in French and English Price per issue : France: 6 € — Abroad : 7,5 € Annual subscribtion (12 issues) France : 60 € — Elsewhere : 75 € Monthly review Directeur de la publication : Mohamad HASSAN Misen en page et maquette : Ṣerefettin ISBN 0761 1285 INSTITUT KURDE, 106, rue La Fayette - 75010 PARIS Tel. : 01-48 24 64 64 - Fax : 01-48 24 64 66 www.fikp.org E-mail: bulletin@fikp.org Information and liaison bulletin Kurdish Institute of Paris Bulletin N° 403 October 2018 • ROJAVA: TURKEY IS FLYING TO SAVE ISIS BY BOMBING THE SYRIAN DEMOCRATIC FORCES • KURDISTAN: PDK WINS PARLIAMENTARY ELECTIONS • IRAQ: FIVE MONTHS AFTER THE ELECTIONS, AN INDEPENDANT PRIME MINISTER TO FORM GOVERNMENT • TURKEY: THE GOVERNMENT IS TRYING TO PREVENT THE HDP FROM TAKING PART IN THE 2019 LOCAL ELECTIONS • IRAN: EXTRA-LEGAL ASSASSINATIONS OF PORTERS, ARBITRARY ARRESTS AND EXECUTIONS IN IRANIAN KURDISTAN • THE NOBEL PEACE PRIZE IS AWARDED TO THE KURDISH YAZIDI ACTIVIST NADIA MURAD • FRANCE: NEW EVACUATION OF A KURDS’ MIGRANT CAMP ROJAVA: TURKEY IS FLYING TO SAVE ISIS BY BOMBING THE SYRIAN DEMOCRATIC FORCES n Afrin, still under Shamiyya gangs at Azaz and near the have continued their offensive on Turkish occupation, Sujo camp, obliging some families, the last pockets held by ISIS Turkey’s jihadist merce- already displaced once to flee the between the Euphrates and the Iraqi naries imposed 15% tax camp. The fighting expanded to border around Hajin, where some I on the olive-trees har- Afrin on the 14th. The military police 3,000 fighters, mostly foreigners, vests that belong to Kurds, the main created by the Turkish Army, arrest- have dug themselves in. After hav- source of agricultural wealth and ed several members of Ahrar ing taken, late in September, the vil- confiscated a considerable number Sharqiyya, and it is rumoured that lages of Al-Sousah and then al- of them, an act made easier by the tensions are high at Jerablous Shajla, the SDF repelled several absence of the owners, barred from between this group and the other counter-attacks with some air sup- returning… At Jandaris fighting factions (ANF). Finally news keep port from the Coalition, announcing even broke out between 2 factions arriving about the abuses suffered 49 jihadists killed. On the 4th US over olive harvest stolen from the by Yezidis, sometimes going as far Marines arrived by air to take part Kurdish cultivators (WKI). On the as murder. in the final attack on Hajin, while 13th fight broke out again between ISIS pursued its counterattacks the Ahrar Sharqiyya and Jabhat The SDF (Syrian Denocratic Forces) North of Baghouz with booby- • 2 • Information and liaison bulletin n° 403 • October 2018 trapped vehicles and some heavy recaptured on the 25th and 26th, the Turkish threat to the rest of weaponry. On the 9th the SDF using booby-trapped vehicles and Rojava has been constant. Already announced the “elimination” of 61 suicide attacks… By the end of the on the 5th the YPG had reinforced its jihadists. In Hajin the djihadists day, having discovered more defences at Manbij, in the middle of dynamited the houses of the fami- corpses, the assessment had risen to rumours of an impending Turkish lies who had fled. Then on the 10th 70 SDF fighters killed and about 100 attack (AMN) and announced on the the Syrian Observatory for Human wounded. The SOHR also 9th that it had shot down a Turkish Rights announced that ISIS had cap- announced 24 Jihadists killed. On drone at Kobanê. On the same day tured 35 SDF fighters and had killed the 28th the SDF confirmed 72 the Turkish Defence Minister, at least 10. However the media offi- deaths before announcing the Hulusi Akar, announced, with the cer of the SDF, Moustafa Bali, denied arrival of reinforcements — 500 arrival of US troops on the 2nd at this, while announcing the death in experienced YPG and YPJ (women’s Gaziantep, the beginning of a battle on the 6th of a French fighter, units) who had come from the West Turkish-American training mission Farid Medjahed, from Marseilles. and some heavy weaponry (AFP). that should, eventually allow joint About a hundred supplementary patrols at Manbij. On the same day, Taking advantage of a dust storm fighters arrived from Manbij on the the Manbij Military Council that hindered air support and con- 30th. However, according to a declared it was ready to defend the siderably limited visibility at ground detailed report in France Soir town. On the 23rd Colonel Sean level the jihadists launched fresh (http://www.francesoir.fr/en-coop- Ryan, spokesman for the Inherent counter-attacks. Despite an SDF matteo-puxton/syrie-etat-islamique- Resolve operation, confirmed that a defence of several hours, they suc- inflige-une-lourde-defaite-aux-fds), common patrol of American troops ceeded in abducting 13 families on the 28th, ISIS had annulled, in and fighters of the Manbij Military from the al-Bahra camp for dis- three days, all the SDF’s gains since Council had retaliated to firing on placed persons, including some ISIS 10th September… the 15th near the village of Boughaz. defectors (OSDH), taking them Ryan did not identify the aggres- towards Hajin. In three days of On the same day the Turkish artillery sors, probably one of the rebel fac- heavy fighting 37 SDF fighters and shelled the SDF positions at Zour tions supported by Turkey… 58 jihadists were killed. On the 14th Maghar, on the Eastern bank of the the SDF announced they had killed Euphrates, just facing Jerablous, in a The moment chosen by Ankara for 105 jihadists in 2 days (Kurdistan 24). riposte, according to the State News launching its shelling on Rojava, just On the 16th, while the SDF were Agency Anatolia, to some shooting after the Istanbul summit on Syria, repelling an attack on Baghouz, coming from that area… Turkish to which the Turkish President par- Major Redur Khalil announced that artillery firing was also aimed at the ticipated alongside his French and the capture of Hajin would take villages of Charikhli, Siftek and Russian opposite numbers and the longer than originally planned part- Ashme, to the West of Kobanê, pro- German Chancellor, clearly brought ly because of the weather conditions voking demonstrations of protest at to light the lack of any Western com- and the fact that the enemy was Qamichli. The SDF lost 4 fighters this mitment to the SDF apart from the quite battle-hardened. According to way between 28th and 31st. alliance against ISIS. Insisting on a the SOHR 70 members of the SDF diplomatic solution to the Syrian and several dozen jihadists had been The timing chosen by Ankara for conflict this summit has enabled killed since the start of the attack on launching these attacks could not them to avoid (but for how much 10th September. According to the fail to suggest a diversionary opera- longer?) an attack by the regime and SOHR a Coalition air strike killed 28 tion aiming at flying to the rescue of its Russian allies on Idlib. However jihadists in Hajin on the 20th while 7 the jihadists… Attacking their “syn- it also showed that Mr. Erdoğan others were killed by the SDF’s chronisation” with the jihadist retains all freedom of movement ground level offensive. On the 22nd counter-attacks, the SDF announced against the North Syrian Federation, the SDF regained control of part of on the 31st a temporary stop in the their authorities still being described al-Susah, gradually reducing the last anti-ISIS campaign, warning that it as “terrorists” in the same way as pockets of jihadist resistance in the was likely to be extended in the with ISIS… On the 30th the Turkish town — particularly round a big event of other Turkish attacks President announced to the AKP mosque. (AFP).That very evening the United Members of Parliament that prepara- States expressed its “extreme con- tions for a new offensive in North However, on the 27th AFP cern” at these “unilateral military Syria were complete, making the announced the deaths of at least 41 strikes” at areas where there could point: “We are going to destroy the SDF fighters in a new counter-attack also be “American personnel”. terrorist structure East of the on Baghouz and Al-Sousah, which Euphrates”. On the same evening the the jihadists seem to have largely Ever since the occupation of Afrin, YPG spokesman, Nouri Mahmoud, n° 403 • October 2018 Information and liaison bulletin • 3 • warned that the YPG “(would) react on Sputnik that all the countries con- ciliations” of the kind that to any threat or attack” in legitimate cerned rapidly repatriate their Damascus had imposed at Deraa or “self defence” (AFP). nationals: Omar made the point “We the Ghouta — a surrender leading to will try the Syrian mercenaries […] the regime’s Army resuming control Furthermore, the question of the but not the foreigners. […] We do (Kurdistan 24). On the 12th the future of the jihadists and their fam- not have a legislation that authorises Russian Foreign Minister, Sergey ilies at present detained in Rojava the death sentence. If we were to Lavrov, accused the US of wanting continues to be raised. To be exact, sentence them and they end up serv- to “create an illegitimate State on the an estimated 500 of their number ing their sentences, where can they Syrian lands East of the has been shown to be more like go?” At least two Americans have Euphrates”… (Spoutnik) and on the 1,000 from 24 different countries.