Turkish attacks on the Sinjar region

Over the last few days, the Turkish army has been attacking Kurdish bases in northern Iraq. "The airstrikes are intended to distract the Turkish population from the government's failure in the Corona crisis and the desolate economic situation in the country," explained Dr. Kamal Sido, Middle East Consultant of the Society for Threatened Peoples (STP), in Göttingen on Wednesday. "In the Kurdish regions of Sinjar, Makhmur, and Kandil, people are being killed to keep Erdogan in power." According to reports, Turkish ground troops have also crossed the border to Iraqi Kurdistan – and Iran is attacking Kurdish positions in the region with artillery and missiles. Apparently, the attacks are not only aimed at Kurdish PKK bases, but also at refugee camps and other civilian targets.

The Sinjar Mountains in the northwest of Iraq are the main settlement area of the Yazidi community. The so-called "Islamic State" (IS) had attacked the region in August 2014, driving away almost the entire Yazidi population. Thousands of people were murdered, and many Yazidi women were raped or forced into slavery. "Apparently, the recent Turkish attacks are aimed at this region, where people have been suffering the consequences of Islamist violence for years," Sido criticized. "The Turkish government claims to be fighting the PKK, but its actions will ultimately strengthen IS in the region." Almost all Kurdish groups had actively tried to fight the Islamic State and other radical Islamist groups, which are often tolerated or supported by Turkey. Now, Turkey is trying to weaken the very groups that could protect the minorities in northern Iraq from attacks by radical Islamist militias.

"NATO and especially the German government must not accept the attacks of its partner country on the Kurdish population," Sido emphasized. "Kneeling before the increasingly despotic Turkish President will only play into the hands of the radical Islamists."