Turkey's Kurds Warn of Kobane 'Tragedy' as Syrian Forces Advance, Media Ignores Ankara's Role
📰 THE STORY: The New Arab reports that Turkey's pro-Kurdish DEM party is urging an end to a 'siege' of Kobane by Syrian forces, warning of severe shortages and impending 'tragedy' in the region. 🔍 WHAT THEY'RE NOT TELLING YOU: Historical Context: While the current focus is on Syrian forces, the critical actor in the region's instability, particularly concerning Kurdish communities, has long been
Turkey. In 2018, Turkey launched 'Operation Olive Branch' to seize Afrin, a Kurdish-majority canton in northern Syria, displacing hundreds of thousands. This followed years of Turkish support for various 'rebel' factions, some with clear links to al-Qaeda and other extremist groups, explicitly to counter the YPG, which forms the backbone of the SDF in Kobane. The 2014-2015 siege of Kobane by ISIS
was widely seen as enabled by Turkey's porous border and tacit support for anti-Kurdish elements, a fact often downplayed by Western media. Double Standard: Western media quick to denounce 'sieges' in Ukraine or by 'authoritarian' regimes often shy away from using similar language when it involves NATO member Turkey's actions against Kurdish populations. When Ukrainian forces are surrounded, it's
a 'heroic stand for democracy.' When Kurdish forces face similar predicaments, often after fighting ISIS on behalf of the West, the framing is frequently neutralized, or the role of the aggressor (Turkey, in alliance with various proxies) is glossed over. The media rarely critiques the $1.5 billion in annual US military aid to Turkey, a NATO ally, despite its repeated incursions into Syria against