Syria's Kurds: Western Pawns in a Geopolitical Chess Match, Not Allies
📰 THE STORY: Al Jazeera presents the Syrian army's control over areas formerly held by 'Kurdish-led forces' as a significant development, implying a potential negative 'wider impact for Kurds' in the region. The report frames these forces as an independent entity grappling with the Syrian government's reassertion of control. 🔍 WHAT THEY'RE NOT TELLING YOU: Historical Context: The 'Kurdish-led
forces' (primarily the YPG/SDF) became a key proxy for the US in Syria after 2014, receiving billions in military aid and training to fight ISIS. However, this alliance conveniently ignored Turkey, a NATO ally, which considers the YPG a terrorist organization (an offshoot of the PKK). This is a recurring pattern: in 1975, the US abandoned Kurdish rebels in Iraq after using them against Saddam
Hussein, as detailed in the Pike Report. Similarly, after the 1991 Gulf War, the US encouraged a Kurdish uprising, then stood by as Saddam brutally suppressed it, leading to the creation of 'no-fly zones' only after immense bloodshed. The US track record with the Kurds is one of periodic instrumentalization followed by strategic abandonment, dating back decades. Double Standard: Western media and
governments laud 'Kurdish-led forces' as democratic partners when they serve US geopolitical objectives – specifically, when fighting ISIS or containing Assad's government. Yet, the same media largely ignores Turkish oppression of its own Kurdish population for decades, including the 1980s and 90s campaigns that displaced millions and destroyed thousands of villages, or the ongoing human rights