dagblog - Comments for "(Kurdish) Syrian Refugees ‘Streaming’ Into Northern (Kurdish) Iraq, UN Says (Kurdish state forming?)"

Related: ?The dark side of

artappraiser — Sat, 31 Aug 2013 12:17:20 +0000

In reply to The Civil War Within Syria's

‘The dark side of Islam’: Christians and Muslims alike pray for Jesuit priest abducted by extremists in Syria
By Ron Hubbard, New York Times via National Post, August 16, 2013

BEIRUT — An Italian Jesuit priest who spent decades promoting religious dialogue in Syria and championed the uprising against President Bashar al-Assad embarked recently on a new mission: persuading an extremist Islamic group to release its prisoners and halt the battles that had spread violence across the country’s northeast.

That was a few weeks ago. He has not been heard from since, and unconfirmed reports that he has been killed have become increasingly common.

The disappearance of the priest, the Rev. Paolo Dall’Oglio, has worried Catholic leaders all the way up to Pope Francis [....]

“He kept saying to the people in the revolution that we can’t lose our goal of building a free, democratic Syria,” said Fawaz Tello, an opposition activist based in Germany who knows Father Dall’Oglio. But Mr. Tello said the priest had gone too far by seeking a cease-fire between Kurdish militias and the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria, which is linked to Al Qaeda.

“They are not with the revolution,” Mr. Tello said. “He was trying to play a role between these two sides, and it was very dangerous.”

[....]

Turns out this isn't Sound of

artappraiser — Sat, 31 Aug 2013 10:49:19 +0000

In reply to (Kurdish) Syrian Refugees ‘Streaming’ Into Northern (Kurdish) Iraq, UN Says (Kurdish state forming?)

Turns out this isn't Sound of Music after all, there's all kinds of those damn nasty details :

Syria: Which Way to Kurdistan?
By Hugh Eakin, New York Review of Books Blog, August 28, 2013

Reporting for this article was supported by a grant from the Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting.

On August 15, photographs began flooding the Internet of what looked like an endless column of people, many carrying small children, some clutching dusty suitcases. As has now been widely reported, the people in this startling scene were Syrian Kurds, fleeing to Iraqi Kurdistan—one of the single largest waves of refugees since the Syrian conflict began three years ago. And as it has received some 40,000 Syrians in less than two weeks, Iraq’s Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG), which rules over this autonomous region, has been praised for taking a strong humanitarian stand at a time when other countries are closing their borders.

“Here, refugees are welcomed, even encouraged,” proclaimed a report in The New York Times on Saturday. Echoing a frequent refrain of the KRG government—which is striving to position itself as a leading force behind a new greater Kurdistan—the report went on to describe this as a moment of hope for “a better future for the region’s Kurds.” Indeed, Masoud Barzani, the powerful president of the KRG, has suggested that Iraqi Kurdistan can serve as a model for the Syrian Kurds to follow. In September, he will host a pan-Kurdish conference in Erbil, the capital of Northern Iraq, that aims to bring together for the first time the Kurds of Iraq, Syria, Turkey, and Iran.

If only things were so simple.

While the dramatic images of refugees pouring into Northern Iraq are new, Northern Iraq’s troubled relations with Syria—and Syria’s Kurds—are not. As I discovered during a trip to Northern Iraq earlier this month, the war in Syria has lately been anything but a boon to the region. [......]

ps-i was so glad to hear from

jollyroger — Fri, 30 Aug 2013 11:59:49 +0000

In reply to The Civil War Within Syria's

ps-i was so glad to hear from Riverbend again--she used to break. y heart on a regular basis.

check out the tough chick

jollyroger — Fri, 30 Aug 2013 11:56:00 +0000

In reply to The Civil War Within Syria's

check out the tough chick with bare head and bandolier! she could be Israeli!. one wonders if all this can end without a new country carved outta Turkey, Iraq and Syria. kurdistan, headwater of all rivers...

The Civil War Within Syria's

artappraiser — Fri, 30 Aug 2013 09:58:19 +0000

In reply to (Kurdish) Syrian Refugees ‘Streaming’ Into Northern (Kurdish) Iraq, UN Says (Kurdish state forming?)

The Civil War Within Syria's Civil War
Armies of Kurdish women are taking on Syria's Islamists -- and winning.
By Harald Doornbos and Jenan Moussa, ForeignPolicy.com, August 28, 2013

RAS AL-AYN, Syria --

[....]

As if Syria does not have enough war already, fighting recently broke out in the northeast of the country between Kurdish forces and radical Islamists -- both of whom are no friends of President Bashar al-Assad's regime. In Ras al-Ayn, all the country's problems come together: The town not only sits on the front lines of fighting between Kurds and Arabs, it is also located right on the edge of the Syrian-Turkish border. The Kurdish fighters in Syria are separated from Turkey's border troops -- traditionally the implacable enemies of any form of Kurdish separatism -- by only a 5-centimeter-thick iron gate. [.....]

"We are fighting America's war on terror right here on the ground," says Kurdish fighter Dijwar Osman. "Our enemies are those al Qaeda fighters who want to destroy our 4,000-year-old Kurdish culture. These jihadists come from Belgium, Holland, Morocco, Libya, and other countries. Unfortunately, the U.S. and Turkey are on the side of al Qaeda, just like the U.S. was on al Qaeda's side in Afghanistan during the '80's."

The fights erupted after Syria's 2 million Kurds declared "self-governance" this past June in a region the Kurds call "Western Kurdistan" or "Rojava," which is Kurdish for "where the sun sets."

Kurds account for 10 percent of Syria's population, making them the country's largest ethnic minority. And they have turned Rojava, which covers roughly 10 percent of the country, into a de facto Kurdish mini-state: They have their own army and police here, names of towns have been changed from Arabic to Kurdish, and the Kurdish language is being taught in schools -- something that was forbidden under the Assad regime.

While the Assad regime and the mainly Islamist Syrian opposition are engaged in a fight to the death elsewhere in the country, they are both staunchly opposed to Kurdish separatist ambitions. Both sides consider the self-governance declaration a first step toward Kurdish independence and a possible break-up of Syria. The move also alarmed the authorities of neighboring country Turkey, which is home to the world's largest Kurdish population and has a long history of violent Kurdish separatism.

The only way to enter Rojava is to sneak in illegally from Turkey or Iraq. We waited in the fields until soldiers weren't on the lookout and then followed a local smuggler across the no-man's land between the countries: We not only jumped a barbed wire fence but also traversed a narrow sand path through a minefield. As we crossed, the smuggler pointed to the area outside the path, saying "boom, boom" by way of warning.

In the town of Rumeilan, about 12 miles from the border with Iraq, you can hear the sound of outgoing mortars. "These go to the Islamists," says Aras Xani, a teacher at a local school who carries a pistol for protection.

"We Kurds are neutral," Aras continues. "We aren't with the regime, and we aren't with the rebels. The regime and the opposition are fighting a sectarian war, which can last decades. We don't want to have anything to do with it. We speak of the Kurdish Spring, not the Arabic Spring."

Although there is not much destruction in Rojava, the situation is far from normal here. In Rumeilan, the main street is barricaded by metal garbage containers -- a precaution against Islamist-made car bombs.

Al Qaeda-linked groups have started kidnapping Kurds in the area. Two of Aras's uncles have been taken after Jabhat al-Nusra, the Syrian al Qaeda affiliate, attacked their family home. During our visit, Aras's mother sat expectantly on the floor in the living room next to a green phone, waiting for the latest information about them. Only five miles down the road, heavy fighting continues between Kurds and Islamists for control over the Syria-Iraq border town of Yarubiya.

[.....]

continues with another page

Syrian Kurds Find More Than a

artappraiser — Fri, 30 Aug 2013 09:48:01 +0000

In reply to (Kurdish) Syrian Refugees ‘Streaming’ Into Northern (Kurdish) Iraq, UN Says (Kurdish state forming?)

Syrian Kurds Find More Than a Refuge in Northern Iraq
By Tim Arango, New York Times, August 23/24, 2013

with a great slideshow. Clear that the Kurds of Iraq, in welcoming these refugees, are taking advantage of the Syrian crisis to try to start a real Kurdish state. The story is really getting sort of amazing.

This VOA article published

artappraiser — Tue, 20 Aug 2013 00:19:10 +0000

In reply to The problem grew massively on

This VOA article published today says the UN estimate now is 30,000 over the last 3 days, and that most of them are Kurds. Excerpt:

The immediate reason for the sudden migration wasn’t clear to relief workers, but UNHCR’s Peter Kessler said about “95 percent are Kurds” and they appear to be fleeing worsening conditions in northern Syria. Kessler said their situation was being made worse by the fighting between rebels and forces loyal to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad as well as rebel “factions allied to more extremist elements.”

The story has a striking set

artappraiser — Tue, 20 Aug 2013 00:09:29 +0000

In reply to The problem grew massively on

The story has a striking set of photos, here's another w/caption: Thousands of Syrian refugees streamed across a bridge over the Tigris River on Thursday; note they are not carrying much at all:

The problem grew massively on

artappraiser — Tue, 20 Aug 2013 00:01:49 +0000

In reply to (Kurdish) Syrian Refugees ‘Streaming’ Into Northern (Kurdish) Iraq, UN Says (Kurdish state forming?)

The problem grew massively on Saturday and it could include many Kurds:

Syria refugees pour into Iraqi Kurdistan in thousands

BBC News, August 18, 2013

Up to 10,000 crossed at Peshkhabour on Saturday, bringing the total influx since Thursday to 20,000. The UN says the reasons are not fully clear.

The UN agencies, the Kurdish regional government and NGOs are struggling to cope, correspondents say [....]

The UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) says this is one of the biggest single waves of refugees it has had to deal with since the uprising against the rule of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad began in March 2011.

While the reasons remain unclear, there has been a sharp rise in clashes between Syrian Kurds and anti-government Islamist militants.

The charity Save the Children has launched an emergency response to the mass arrival, distributing basic supplies to those waiting to be registered.

"This is an unprecedented influx of refugees, and the main concern is that so many of them are stuck out in the open at the border or in emergency reception areas with limited, if any, access to basic services," said Alan Paul, Save the Children's emergency team leader, who is in the area.

"The refugee response in Iraq is already thinly stretched, and close to half of the refugees are children who have experienced things no child should." [....]