Syrien: Hilferufe aus Kurdistan
Aus Rojava kommen deutliche Hilferufe sowohl an die Europäer als auch die USA. Sie werden wohl ungehört verklingen.
A top Kurdish official has called on Europe not to abandon Syrian Kurds once the battle against the Islamic State group is over and to help set up an international force to protect them from Turkey.
European powers “have a political and moral responsibility” to the Kurds, Aldar Khalil told AFP in a interview in Paris, warning that the Kurds would seek the protection of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad if failed by Europe and the US.
The Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) have been leading the fight against the Islamic State group in Syria for the past four years, backed up by air strikes from a US-led coalition.
With IS’s self-declared caliphate now in ruins, the Kurds fear being left at the mercy of Turkey after the US declares mission accomplished in the final battle currently underway for the jihadists’ last Syrian holdout.
Mazloum Kobani, commander-in-chief of the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), called on international coalition allies to keep 1,000-1,500 troops in Syria.
His call comes as the US prepares to withdraw its 2,000 troops from northeast Syria once the last ISIS holdout is liberated in Deir ez-Zor. France has already pledged to maintain a troop presence.
“We would like to have air cover, air support and a force on the ground to coordinate with us,” Kobani told reporters at an undisclosed airbase in northeast Syria, Reuters reports.
The SDF fears it will be left vulnerable to attack by Turkey and ISIS could reemerge if coalition forces pull out.