For all of the latest Kurdish news, see these sources:
ANF English: https://anfenglishmobile.com/
Hawar News: https://www.hawarnews.com/en/
Rojava Information Center: https://rojavainformationcenter.com
Twitter: https://twitter.com/ RojavaIC
Women Defend Rojava: http://womendefendrojava.net/en/
Rojhelat: http://rojhelat.info/en/
Rojava Centre for Strategic Studies
Komun Academy:
MA NEWS
http://mezopotamyaajansi22.com/en/NEWS
NEWS
- Women in Raqqa celebrate 3 years of freedom
- Turkish opposition leaders congratulate Kurdish party on anniversary
- Swedish delegation visits Syria for talks with Kurdish militias
- Strasbourg sit-in calling for freedom of Öcalan ends first week
- People of Shengal reject agreement between KDP and Baghdad
- Armenians in Qamishlo protest against Turkey
- UN warns about conditions, security at notorious Syrian displacement camp
- Ban on Kurdish-language play in Istanbul sparks condemnation
- Ilham Ehmed: Negotiations with Damascus failed
- Translation: General amnesty for prisoners in North and East Syria – AANES resolution
- Kurdish Parties Differ over Return of Syrian Peshmerga
- Kurds across the world demand freedom for jailed PKK leader Ocalan
- Turkey Cutting Water to Kurdish Areas in Northeast Syria Again
- Hate speech against Armenians, Syrians, Kurds on the increase, warns İHD
OPINION, COMMENTARY, ANALYSIS
- Demirtaş: The plot hatched against the HDP over Kobani
- Armenia-Azerbaijan ceasefire fails again, thanks to Pakistan, Turkey
- Equal eye distance: time to show more solidarity with Assyrians and other Christians
- Three years after the liberation of Raqqa
- How Turkey’s Military Adventures Decrease Freedom at Home
- Turkish Defector Says He Was Ordered to Kill Politician in Austria
- Lawyer Köklü: In the Imralı system war and peace collide
- Database: Former ISIS members now part of Turkish-backed forces in Sere Kaniye and Tel Abyad
- The mood of a Kurd
- Turkey: Politicians and Activists Detained
MULTIMEDIA
- Labour MP Charalambous says Öcalan key for peace in Middle East
- Nathan Felix presents chamber opera inspired by Öcalan
- Kurdish man spent his life clearing remnant mines from Iran-Iraq war
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NEWS
- Women in Raqqa celebrate 3 years of freedom
19 October 2020|ANF English
With the liberation of their cities from ISIS, women who have regained their leading role in society are working hard to overcome all kinds of obstacles and eliminate the damage created by the gangs.
https://anfenglishmobile.com/features/women-in-raqqa-celebrate-3-years-of-freedom-47385
- Turkish opposition leaders congratulate Kurdish party on anniversary
19 October 2020|Ahval
The main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) leaders congratulated the pro-Kurdish Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) on the party’s eighth anniversary that fell on Sunday, Diken news website reported.
https://ahvalnews.com/hdp/turkish-opposition-leaders-congratulate-kurdish-party-anniversary
- Swedish delegation visits Syria for talks with Kurdish militias
19 October 2020|Middle East Monitor
The delegation, led by the ministry’s Special Envoy for the Syrian Crisis, Per Örnéus, and Avin Jetin from the European Institute for Peace, met with the Co-chair of the Kurdish administration’s Foreign Relations Commission Abdulkarim Omar for talks on political and humanitarian matters.
- Strasbourg sit-in calling for freedom of Öcalan ends first week
17 October 2020|ANF English
The sit-in organised in Strasbourg within the scope of the ‘End isolation, occupation and fascism; Time for Freedom’ campaign launched by the KCK, has completed its first week.
- People of Shengal reject agreement between KDP and Baghdad
17 October 2020|ANF English
Many people insist that the agreement on Shengal made between the central Iraqi government and the South Kurdistan Region Administration came about as an answer to Turkey’s requests. The agreement on Shengal, according to many, is nothing but a green light to target Shengal.
- Armenians in Qamishlo protest against Turkey
17 October 2020|ANF English
Turkey’s role in Azerbaijan’s war against Armenia was protested in Qamishlo. “Erdogan’s terror in Artsakh is the continuation of the occupation in Syria,” was the title of the protest outside the Armenian association in the northern Syrian city.
https://anfenglishmobile.com/rojava-syria/armenians-in-qamishlo-protest-against-turkey-47316
- UN warns about conditions, security at notorious Syrian displacement camp
17 October 2020|Kurdistan 24
The United Nations voiced significant concern on Friday over security, available health services, and overall humanitarian conditions for tens of thousands held in the notorious al-Hol displacement camp in northeastern Syria.
https://www.kurdistan24.net/en/news/ea9ddc8d-0e0d-4a04-84ce-ac9ce28ac7f4
- Ban on Kurdish-language play in Istanbul sparks condemnation
14 October 2020|Middle East Eye
Istanbul’s governorate has banned a Kurdish-language play that was set to open on Tuesday, provoking condemnation from actors and the city’s mayor. Beru, a Kurdish adaptation of Dario Fo’s 1981 satire Trumpets and Raspberries, was due to open at the city’s municipal theatre, marking the first time a Kurdish-language play had been staged in the institution’s 106-year history.
https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/turkey-ban-kurdish-language-play-istanbul
- Ilham Ehmed: Negotiations with Damascus failed
13 October 2020|ANF English
Indicating that the government of Damascus is trying to cause strife between Kurds and Arabs instead of solving the Syrian crisis, Ilham Ehmed said, “The negotiations with the Damascus government remain to be inconclusive.”
https://anfenglishmobile.com/rojava-syria/ilham-ehmed-negotiations-with-damascus-failed-47225
- Translation: General amnesty for prisoners in North and East Syria – AANES resolution
12 October 2020|Rojava Information Center
Many prisoners in North and East Syria will be released via a general amnesty or have their sentences halved, the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria has announced. The decision, which includes some exceptions to ensure security in the region and enshrine victims’ right to justice, follows AANES’ announcement of an amnesty for Syrian nationals in Hol Camp.
- Kurdish Parties Differ over Return of Syrian Peshmerga
12 October 2020|Asharq Al-Awsat
The Kurdish National Council and the Kurdish National Unity Parties met earlier this month at the international coalition base in al-Hasakeh. The meeting was attended by commander of the Syrian Democratic Forces, Mazloum Abdi.
https://english.aawsat.com/home/article/2559946/kurdish-parties-differ-over-return-syrian-peshmerga
- Kurds across the world demand freedom for jailed PKK leader Ocalan
12 October 2020|Morning Star
People took to the streets, charging: “the time has come” as protests marked the 22nd anniversary of what supporters claim is an “international conspiracy” against PKK leader Abdullah Ocalan.
- Turkey Cutting Water to Kurdish Areas in Northeast Syria Again
6 October 2020|SOFREP
Turkey is ignoring international calls to resume the water flow to the Kurdish-held areas of northeastern Syria. Instead, it is using the water flow as a weapon against the Kurdish leaders.
https://sofrep.com/news/turkey-cutting-water-to-kurdish-areas-in-northeast-syria-again/
- Hate speech against Armenians, Syrians, Kurds on the increase, warns İHD
6 October 2020|Bianet
The Human Rights Association (İHD) has called on political parties to fight against racist hate speech. Saying that there has been an increase in hate speech in Turkey, the İHD noted, “We would like to specifically note that if hate speech is not controlled, it triggers violence and causes hate crime”.
OPINION, COMMENTARY, ANALYSIS
- Demirtaş: The plot hatched against the HDP over Kobani
20 October 2020| Gazete Duvar
Selahattin Demirtaş explains the environment in which the Turkish government started to come down on the People’s Demcoratic Party at the same time that the people of Kobani in Syria was experiencing ISIS barbarism.
https://www.hdp.org.tr/en/demirtas-the-plot-hatched-against-the-hdp-over-kobani/14750
- Armenia-Azerbaijan ceasefire fails again, thanks to Pakistan, Turkey
19 October 2020|DNA
Over 700 Armenians and an unknown number of Azerbaijani people have been killed since September 27 when the worst fight in decades broke out between the Christian-dominated Armenia and the Shia Muslim-dominated Azerbaijan.
- Equal eye distance: time to show more solidarity with Assyrians and other Christians
19 October 2020|Open Democracy
The thoughts of Uzay Bulut a Kurdish artist in exile on solidarity and art.
- Three years after the liberation of Raqqa
17 October 2020|ANF English
Three years ago Raqqa was freed from IS domination. The city, located about 200 kilometers west of Aleppo, has since been rebuilt. The previous three years of reign of terror have left deep traces.
https://anfenglishmobile.com/rojava-syria/three-years-after-the-liberation-of-raqqa-47317
- How Turkey’s Military Adventures Decrease Freedom at Home
15 October 2020|New York Times
Involvement in regional conflicts such as the dispute between Azerbaijan and Armenia has whipped up nationalist fervor and obliterated space for advocates of peace and democracy.
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/10/15/opinion/armenia-azerbaijan-conflict.html
- Turkish Defector Says He Was Ordered to Kill Politician in Austria
13 October 2020|New York Times
The testimony by the man, who claimed to be an intelligence agent, offers insight into President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s pursuit of foes and undermines the conviction of a U.S. Consulate employee in Istanbul.
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/10/13/world/europe/turkey-austria-erdogan-assassin.html
- Lawyer Köklü: In the Imralı system war and peace collide
11 October 2020|ANF English
Asrın Law Office lawyer Serbay Köklü evaluated the 6-month lawyer and phone call ban imposed on Kurdish people’s leader Abdullah Öcalan, Ömer Hayri Konar, Veysi Aktaş and Hamili Yıldırım who are held as political hostages in Imralı Prison.
- Database: Former ISIS members now part of Turkish-backed forces in Sere Kaniye and Tel Abyad
9 October 2020|Rojava Information Center
A new Rojava Information Center report reveals the identities of over 40 former ISIS members being sheltered, funded and protected by Turkey in the occupied regions. The report reveals that many ISIS commanders, fighters and emirs are now on the Turkish payroll, using Turkish-issued ID cards and receiving commands from Turkish intelligence as part of the Turkish-controlled ‘Syrian National Army’.
- The mood of a Kurd
4 October 2020|Ahval
For a while now I have no desire to write. Whenever I sit at my computer, I come to notice a distinct non-enthusiasm for writing. With every passing day, the feeling that I am writing on the sand takes me over further.
https://ahvalnews.com/kurds/mood-kurd
- Turkey: Politicians and Activists Detained
2 October 2020|Human Rights Watch
An Ankara court has ordered the detention of 17 current and former politicians and officials from the opposition Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP)and imposed judicial control conditions on three others released from custody, Human Rights Watch said today.
https://www.hrw.org/news/2020/10/02/turkey-politicians-and-activists-detained
MULTIMEDIA
- Labour MP Charalambous says Öcalan key for peace in Middle East
17 Oct 2020|ANF English
Labour MP Bambos Charalambous underlined that Mr Öcalan is a key for peace in Middle East.
- Nathan Felix presents chamber opera inspired by Öcalan
17 Oct 2020|ANF English
A new chamber opera inspired by Kurdish people’s leader Abdullah Öcalan has been composed by Nathan Felix.
https://anfenglishmobile.com/culture/nathan-felix-presents-chamber-opera-inspired-by-Ocalan-47303
- Kurdish man spent his life clearing remnant mines from Iran-Iraq war
5 October 2020|Middle East Eye
A short video describes how Hoshyar Ali has been deactivating remnant mines from the Iran-Iraq war since 1981. Because of his work, he’s lost loved ones and became a double amputee, yet he refuses to quit “for the sake of humanity”.
https://www.middleeasteye.net/video/kurdish-man-spent-his-life-clearing-remnant-mines-iran-iraq-war
Peace in Kurdistan
Campaign for a political solution of the Kurdish Question
Email: estella24@tiscali.co.uk
https://www.peaceinkurdistancampaign.com
Contacts Estella Schmid: 07846 666 804 & Melanie Gingell: 07572 430903
Patrons: John Austin, Baroness Blower of Starch Green, former GS NUT, Prof Bill Bowring, Julie Christie, Noam Chomsky, Jeremy Corbyn MP, Prof Mary Davis, Lord Dholakia, Simon Dubbins, UNITE International Director, Jill Evans, former MEP, Desmond Fernandes, Lindsey German, Convenor STWC, Melanie Gingell, Christopher Gingell, Prof Dr. Michael Gunter, Secretary-General, EU Turkey Civic Commission (EUTCC), Rahila Gupta, journalist, Nick Hildyard, policy advisor, Dafydd Iwan, Former President Plaid Cymru, James Kelman, Bruce Kent, Jean Lambert, former MEP, Dr Les Levidow, Open University, Elfyn Llwyd, Aonghas MacNeacail, Scottish Gaelic poet, Mike Mansfield QC, David Morgan, journalist, Doug Nicholls, General Secretary, GFTU, Dr. Jessica Ayesha Northey, Sinn Fein MLA Conor Murphy, Dr Thomas Jeffrey Miley, Kate Osamor MP, Margaret Owen OBE, Ali Gul Ozbek, Former Councillor and Mayor of Haringey; Gareth Peirce, Dr Felix Padel, Maxine Peake, actor, Dr Thomas Phillips, Liverpool John Moores University, Trevor Rayne, writer, Joe Ryan, Tony Simpson, Bertrand Russell Peace Foundation, Stephen Smellie, PIK Trade Union Liaison Officer, Jonathan Steele, journalist, Steve Sweeney, journalist, Gianni Tognoni, General Secretary Permanent People’s Tribunal, Dr Tove Skutnabb-Kangas, Dr Tom Wakeford, Dr Derek Wall, Julie Ward, former MEP, Kariane Westrheim, Chair, EU Turkey Civic Commission (EUTCC); Hywel Williams MP.