As the world focuses on Israel’s war against Hamas, Turkey is exploiting the opportunity to expand its military assaults on the Kurds, now including in them Syrian Christians accused of aiding the Kurds.
Turkey has reportedly “carried out 76 drone strikes in the northeast” this year, but Turkey continues to present these attacks as fighting “terrorism” in its targeting of Kurdish groups, along with “their partners.” In November, Turkey escalated its war on the Kurds, amid warnings from Russia and West. A month later, it doubled down on drone attacks against Kurds, while global attention was fixed on Gaza.
Turkey also recently signed a pact with Somalia, which is in part intended to keep out the “foreign interference” of Europe. It also serves to expand Turkish influence in the Horn of Africa. Erdogan’s ultimate mission is a global caliphate — a revived Ottoman Empire.
“Who Is Syrian Christian Militia Targeted in Turkish Drone Attacks?,” by Sirwan Kajjo, Voice of America, February 29, 2024:
WASHINGTON — Local officials in northeastern Syria said a series of Turkish drone strikes on Wednesday killed and wounded several people in a Kurdish-controlled town near the border with Turkey.
Unlike other attacks carried out by Turkey in recent months, those targeted Wednesday were not Syrian Kurdish fighters. According to local sources, three members of a local Christian militia were killed and two others were wounded in several Turkish drone strikes on the town of Derik in northeastern Syria.
Ankara has not commented on the recent attacks, but Turkey has been targeting areas under the control of the Syrian Democratic Forces, a Kurdish-led military alliance that has been a major U.S. partner in the fight against Islamic State group militants.
Turkey’s attacks have increased in recent months. Turkey views the SDF as an extension of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), which is considered a terrorist organization by Ankara and Washington. But the United States makes a distinction between the two Kurdish groups….
The Christian group that Turkey targeted Wednesday is called Sutoro, a local security force that is part of the Syriac Military Council, itself part of the SDF. Sutoro was founded in 2012 in the wake of Syria’s civil war. It later entered an alliance with Kurdish forces to defend Christians and other communities in northeastern Syria from other armed groups.
Kurdish officials say Christian representation within the SDF is an important indicator of northeastern Syria’s diversity and its autonomous administration.
Cynthia says
The Kurds and Christians are the real victims of Islamist Turkey. Islam always plays the poor victim when it terrorizes. Flip the narrative and the gullible West hast bought it, even within our own borders.
Mick says
By damming the Tigris, Turkey is flooding the Kurds and scorching the farms of Syria and Iraq. OTOH, in 1915 the Kurds helped the Turks and Azeris massacre 1.5m Armenians and Syriac Christians.
Today, alongside Israel, Turkey are arming Shi’a Azerbaijan to fight for an exclave in Armenia. Time for the US to boot Turkey out of NATO, and stop Israel.arming the Azeris.
࿗Infidel࿘ says
Note that Azerbaijan doesn’t consider itself a shi’a country, despite its population being that. The thing w/ the ex-Soviet -stans is that during the Soviet era, the Communists emphasized ethnicity but enforced Atheism. Which is why when the Soviet Union came apart, all those -stans went w/ their ethnic, rather than religious brethren
➤ Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan are sunni and Turkic, and became allies of Turkey. At the time (1992), the Erdogan era has still not started, so they had a secular, Turkic ally in Ankara. When Erdogan came to power and started the Turkic council, Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan initially declined to join it. Uzbekistan joined it some years ago, and Turkmenistan has observer status there
➤ Tajikistan is sunni but Farsi, so they initially were attracted to Iran, and declared the Samanid sultanate as their foundation. However, after they squelched jihadist attempts at a takeover w/ Russian support, they stopped that affiliation of Iran and started exploring their Zoroastrian roots. Politically, they happen to be isolated
➤ Azerbaijan is shi’a but Turkic, and so latched on to Turkey rather than Iran. On top of that, since Iran’s north-west province by the same name exists, Azerbaijan claims that as well
Although Iran would be completely justified in claiming Azerbaijan, since the foundation of Iran’s shi’a legacy was laid by an Azeri dynasty called the Safavids, which started out of Ardabil, then had its capital at Tabriz before moving it to Isfahan. Anyway, Azerbaijan is an enemy of Iran, so Israel took advantage of that to establish listening posts for Iran on Azeri territory. It’s also had the unfortunate effect of Iran supporting Azerbaijan against Armenia
Another reason that the US should leave NATO: Turkey is not an ally by any stretch of the imagination
Ray Jarman says
+1
Infidel, this is one of your best responses and exactly on target. Thanks for the clear and concise opine.
Mick says
Not a whisper in the Telegraph and Spectator, as usual. Credit to Jihad Watch for doing just that.
OLD GUY says
Why do we still allow Turkey to be in NATO, the government of turkey is allowing the murder of Christians across the country. They are promoting and encouraging the islamic invasion of Europe.
libertyORdeath says
Did the Pope make sure to go on TV and call it TERRORISM like he did when it was the IDF?