Kobanê People’s Assembly Co-President: The Streets Are Full Of ISIS Corpses

(ANF/URFA) Kobanê People’s Assembly Co-President Ayşe Efendi has told Rojnews that many parts of Kobanê are littered with dead ISIS fighters, saying “the streets are full of corpses. For this reason there is a danger of epidemic.”

Ayşe Efendi, who is currently across the border from Kobanê in the district of Suruç in Urfa province, spoke about ongoing developments in the city. Efendi said that many parts of the city which had been captured by ISIS had been retaken owing to the resistance of the YPG/YPJ and that large parts of the city had been liberated.

Efendi underlined that that ISIS, which had concentrated its forces last night for a new attack on the city, had been dealt a severe blow., saying:

“Right now the YPG and YPJ have the initiative in a large section of Kobanê. ISIS has suffered many losses in the recent days’ fighting. The streets of Kobanê are full of corpses. For this reason there is a danger of epidemic. Right now ISIS is in a very difficult situation. For this reason they want to take over the border crossing to Turkey and open a corridor. For the last 4-5 days they are trying to accomplish this. However they have been unsuccessful. They are losing 10s of fighters everyday. Now and then they are employing chemical weapons.”

The Youth Should Turn Toward Kobanê

Ayşe Efendi also evaluated the coalition airstrikes, saying “the coalition forces are hitting ISIS at strategic locations. If these attacks are more effective it will have a great impact on ISIS. Since yesterday some weapons and ammunition depots were struck in Rakka and Girê Spî (Til Ebyad) and this was a very good thing. Striking these targets prevents help from coming from those places.”

Efendi said that all parts of Kurdistan needed to struggle for Kobanê and made a call on Kurds – and particularly the Kurdish youth – to continue the struggle around Kobanê, saying:

“All Kurds and particularly Kurds in South Kurdistan must fight for Kobanê. If Kobanê falls then the whole of Kurdistan will fall. Let everyone know this. Let our people leaving in South and North Kurdistan and in Europe escalate their actions. Let them remain on the streets as long as possible. Let the Kurdish youth turn toward Kobanê.Let them join the ranks of the YPG and YPJ against the ISIS gangs.”

Kobanê Is A Milestone

The following is an English-translation of the article “Kobanê milattır“ written by M. Ali Çelebi. It originally appeared in Özgür Gündem.

Almost two weeks have passed since PYD co-president Salih Muslim met the special envoy from the [Turkish] Foreign Ministry, Feridun Sinirlioğlu, in Istanbul on October 5th. Following this meeting contact continued by telephone. However the officials I met with from the PYD have said that the corridor which [Turkey] was to open to allow the passage of volunteers from the Cizîrê Canton and weapons such as anti-tank missiles to Kobanê has not materialized as promised.

Following this critical visit Muslim began another round of meetings which great significance for the history of Kurdistan. If you remember Muslim’s son Şervan lost his life on the Til Ebyad front on October 9th, 2013. Muslim had gone to Rojava to receive condolences and his return [to Europe] was forbidden by the KDP which is run by Mesud and Neçirvan Barzani, who themselves had placed Rojava under embargo in conjunction with Turkey. Just a short time ago, Barzani held a diplomatic meeting around Rojava at the Semalka border-crossing and Muslim received an official invitation from Hewlêr (Erbil). And Muslim flew to Hewlêr together with the Representative of the Rojava Cantons in Europe Sinem Mihemed, Aldar Xelil from TEV-DEM, and Mihemmed Musa from the Syrian Kurds Left Party on October 13, 2014.

Also present at the meeting were representatives of the KDP-Syria, which was formed from the El Parti, the Azadi Parties (the Azadi party run by Mustafa Cuma and the Azadi party run by Mustafa Oso) and the Yetkiti party. There were also people from the KCK involved.

I asked PYD Foreign Relations Officer Zuhad Kobanê about both the visits to both Turkey and Hewlêr. First the expected steps following the Ankara visit: A corridor was to be opened and volunteers and weapons such as anti-tank missiles were to be allowed to pass. No obstacles would be placed on humanitarian aid. ISIS positions close to the border were to be struck per the rules of engagement.

- “Until now there has not been one practical step taken. Now and then they get on the telephone, now and then they don’t. ‘I don’t know where it’s jammed up’ they tell us, ‘we are working on it.’”

-Has the military bureaucracy jammed up?

-“They haven’t taken any steps, these are delay tactics.”

Zuhad says that in practice Turkey has shown that it is waiting for the canton to fall.

He says that if the coalition forces had began to operate from the air earlier and consistently it would not have come to this point. The effect of the outcries and uprisings by people in Europe and everywhere else created a change in public opinion and this placed pressure on the United States which began consistent airstrikes against ISIS positions only as they were entering neighborhoods in the city. Zuhad claimed that before there had been an expectation that Kobanê would fall quickly, saying “they looked and saw that the YPG was resisting and changed their policies.” Zuhad says that countries such as the United States began to think that if a massacre were to take place in the city they would be held responsible.

The Hewlêr Visit And A Common Force

Well Kurds,what was the true nature of the Hewlêr visit? Problems around representation within the KDP-Syria which occupies a place in ENKS have not been overcome. We will see this crisis reflected back depending on Barzani’s influence over these parties. Zuhad summarized these meetings which are giving importance to unity among Kurds thus: “the basic question is the resistance in Kobanê. The resistance in Kobanê has made everyone responsible. If they do nothing they will have a difficult time with history and the people. For this reason the request [for a meeting] came from them.”

Can something like the common formed between the KDP, YNK, HPG, YPG, YPJ and YBŞ in places like Kirkuk, Mosul, and Maxmûr emerge in Rojava?

“We are not against it. Let them come and fight. But don’t let them make it conditional. Going around saying ‘this is mine.’ Everyone has lost martyrs and they have sat on the side and said ‘come on let’s unite.’ Is this how things are done? They did not send us a single bullet. There are so many martyrs and wounded in Kobanê. Let them come and join the resistance and defend their own people. We went their for an alliance, we have our hopes. This is an historical process, let them come but let it not be conditional.

Kobanê has become a milestone for the Kurds. All Kurds have rallied around it. Kobanê has affected international policies and has changed them. It has also changed Kurdish politics. This meeting is also a product of the Kobanê resistance. In Kurdish politics there will be something known as history and politics before and after Kobanê.”

As for KRG PM Neçirvan Barzani’s claim that they sent weapons to Kobanê I asked TEV-DEM officials about it. Some weapons have arrived in the Cizîrê Canton however since Turkey has not opened a corridor they are still waiting there. As the ISIS conflagration was growing the HPG saved the KDP’s honor in Maxmûr and Hewlêr, and the YPG/YPJ saved it in Şengal (Sinjar). Let’s see if the KDP can learn a lesson and open a new page.

Over 1,250 ISIS Fighters Killed in Kobanê Over Past Month

(ANF) Today is the 30th day in ISIS’s attack on Kobanê. According to figures today released by the YPG 1,294 ISIS fighters have been killed in the fighting thus far. Ten tanks and a large number of military vehicles have also been destroyed and a large number of military equipment has been captured.

Kobanê, which has been under siege by ISIS for a year and a half, has been under heavy attack since September 15th. The goal of ISIS, which has brought up reinforcements from its centers as far away as Mosul and Rakka, was to capture Kobanê quickly. However owing to the resistance of YPG and YPJ fighters they were unable to carry out their plan. ISIS, which wants to lessen the pain of its defeats in Jezza, Sinjar Til Hemis and Rabia, wanted victory in Kobanê and began attacking on all three fronts around the city with heavy weapons.

ISIS has intensified its attacks on Kobanê with weapons captured from the Syrian and Iraqi armies and the support of Turkey. However the open support given to the gangs by Turkey has been noticed by the public.

On September 20th Turkey sent 5 trucks full of rockets and heavy machine guns. These arms were delivered to ISIS near the village of Qeremox in the El-Bet region of the Kobanê canton. This support has been documented on multiple occasions. The ISIS gangs, receiving support from Turkey and other regional powers, have massacred scores of civilians around Kobanê including children, women and the elderly. The gangs, now attacking the city center, have been dealt serious blows over recent days and have lost many of their forward positions. In fighting with the YPG/YPJ over the course of the last month 1,294 ISIS have been killed and a large quantity of military equipment and weapons were captured.

Fighting Over The Past Month

Week 1

The YPG has been involved in a merciless resistance to ISIS gangs since they began to attack Kobanê on September 15th. In the first week of the fighting there were 17 major clashes. 232 ISIS fighters were killed. 4 tanks’ 20 military vehicles, and 7 truck-mounted dushkas were destroyed. 17 kalashnikovs, 2 M-16s, 1 motor launcher, 1 BKC machine gun, 1 rocket launcher and various military equipment were seized. A total of 32 YPG and YPJ fighters also lost their lives in these clashes.

Week 2

In the second week of the fighting two ISIS headquarters were destroyed, along with 4 tanks, 3 dushkas (23 ve 14.5), 9 military vehicles, 1 humvee, 2 motorcycles and one mortar launcher were destroyed. 7 kalashnikovs were also captured. In this week’s fighting 294 ISIS fighteres were killed. 32 YPG/YPJ fighters also lost their lives. They also carried out 5 suicide (fedai) attacks on the city’s western front. 5 fighters from the Burkan El-Firat also lost their lives.

Week 3

As fighting intensified in the third week the ISIS gangs were dealt many hard blows. 2 tanks, three motor launchers (2 23s and 1 14), one humvee, 7 military vehicles, and truck bomb (together with two occupants) were destroyed. 10 kalashnikovs, 1 B7 Karnas sniper rifle, and 2 night-vision binoculars were captured. Over the course of the week fighting broke out at 50 different points and 351 ISIS gang members were killed. A total of 41 YPG/YPJ fighters were also killed. It was this week that Arîn Mîrxan killed tens of ISIS fighters with her suicide (fedai) attack and became the symbol of Kobanê among the Kurds and the world. 4 Burkan El-Firat fighters also lost their lives.

Week 4

As a result of the stiff resistance shown by the YPG/YPJ and the people of Kobanê a strategic area controlled by ISIS was liberated. 4 military vehicles, 1 transport vehicle full of arms, 3 trucks, 5 truck bombs, 1 motorcycle, 1 57. mortar launcher, 3 RPGs with ammunition, 21 light weapons, 16 kalashnikovs, 3 BKCs and a large quantity of ammunition were captured. 417 ISIS gang members were killed in the course of the week’s fighting. 24 YPG/YPJ fighters – including YPJ commander Rojda Axîn – also lost their lives in the fighting.