People's Protection Units

"YPG" redirects here. For other uses, see YPG (disambiguation).
People's Protection Units
Yekîneyên Parastina Gel (YPG)
‏وحدات حماية الشعب‎‎‎

YPG flag
Active 2011–present
Allegiance

Federation of Northern Syria – Rojava (2012-present)[1]

Democratic Union Party (2004-present)
Type Light infantry militia
Size 50,000[2]
Part of Syrian Democratic Forces
Motto(s) YPG dimeşe, erd û ezman diheje (YPG is marching, and the earth and sky [or heavens] tremble)
Engagements

Syrian Civil War

Iraqi Civil War

Website Official website
Commanders
General Commander Sîpan Hemo
Spokesperson Rêdûr Xelîl
Spokesperson Xebat Îbrahîm
Special forces commander Ali Boutan †[3]
Notable
commanders		 Ciwan Îbrahîm, Roşna Akêd
Military situation in the Syrian Civil War as of 5 September 2016

The People's Protection Units (Kurdish: Yekîneyên Parastina Gel‎, یەکینەکانی پاراستنی گەل pronounced [jɑkinæjen pɑrɑstinɑ gæl]; YPG), also known as the People's Defense Units, is the main armed service of the Federation of Northern Syria – Rojava. The YPG is primarily ethnic Kurdish, but it also recruits Arabs, Syrian Turks, Syrian Chechens[4] and people from other countries as far away as Australia. The Syriac Military Council are Assyrian/Syriac Christian units integrated into its command structure.

The YPG considers itself a democratic people's army and conducts internal elections for appointing officers.[5]

Military tradition

As a guerrilla combat force, the YPG relies on speed, stealth, and surprise. It can "deploy quickly to front lines and concentrate its forces before quickly redirecting the axis of its attack to outflank and ambush its enemy. The key to its success is autonomy. YPG brigades are inculcated with a high degree of freedom and can adapt to the changing battlefield."[6]

The YPG relies heavily on snipers and backs them by suppressing enemy fire using mobile heavy machine guns. It also uses roadside bombs to prevent outflanking maneuvers, particularly at night. Its lines have yet to break when attacked by Islamic State (ISIL) forces, who have better equipment including helmets and body armor.[6]

Relying on speed, stealth, and surprise, it is the archetypal guerrilla army, able to deploy quickly to front lines and concentrate its forces before quickly redirecting the axis of its attack to outflank and ambush its enemy. The key to its success is autonomy. Although operating under an overarching tactical rubric, YPG brigades are inculcated with a high degree of freedom and can adapt to the changing battlefield.[7]

The YPG and HPG have also trained and equipped more than 1,000 Yazidis, who operate in the Mount Sinjar area as local defense units under their supervision.[6]

Women's Protection Units

The Women's Protection Units (YPJ), also known as the Women's Defense Units, is the YPG's female brigade, which was set up in 2012. Kurdish media have said that YPJ troops became vital during the Siege of Kobanî.[8][9]

History of the YPG

2003: Foundation of the PYD

The Democratic Union Party (PYD) was founded in 2003 as one of many Kurdish opposition parties in the Syrian parliament.[10][11] The PYD distinguished itself as the only Kurdish party that fully supported the Qamishli uprising in 2004. As a result, it was brutally repressed in the years leading up to the Syrian Civil War, putting it in weak position at the outset of the conflict. Turkish government officials have maintained that it was the political branch of the blacklisted PKK in Syria.[12]

2011: Syrian Civil War

It is not known when YPG militias were first founded, but some sources have placed their origin as early as 2004,[13] after the Syrian government quashed a rebellion in its largest Kurdish-majority city, Qamishli, killing 30 Kurds. It did not emerge as a significant force until the Syrian revolt erupted in 2011 but it is possible that militias had been organising clandestinely during the interim.

PKK fighters that lived in exile in Iraq were of Syrian origin or had been trained there took the opportunity to return to Syria[14]

The YPG is considered the armed wing of the PYD.[15] Other groups taking part in the YPG include the Kurdish Democratic Progressive Party in Syria (KDPP).[16]

July 2012: Control of Kurdish areas

In July 2012, the YPG had a standoff with Syrian government forces in the Kurdish city of Kobanî and the surrounding areas. After negotiations, government forces withdrew and the YPG took possession of Kobanî, Amuda, and Afrin.[17][18] By December 2012, it had expanded to eight brigades, which were formed in Qamişlo, Kobanî, and Ras al-Ayn (Serê Kaniyê) and in the districts of Afrin, Al-Malikiyah, and Al-Bab.[19]

Late 2012: Islamist attacks make YPG dominant

The YPG did not initially take an offensive posture in the Syrian Civil War. Aiming mostly to defend Kurdish-majority areas, it avoided engaging forces of the Syrian government, which still controlled several enclaves in Kurdish territory. The YPG changed this policy when Ras al-Ayn was taken by the al-Qaeda affiliated al-Nusra Front. At first the YPG conquered the surrounding government-controlled areas Al-Darbasiyah (Kurdish: Dirbêsî), Tel Tamer and of Al-Malikiyah (Kurdish: Dêrika Hemko) in order to prevent the FSA from gaining more power in the area. The subsequent Battle of Ras al-Ayn started in ernest when on 19 November 2012 Al-Nusra Front and a second al-Qaeda affiliate, Ghuraba al-Sham, attacked Kurdish positions in the town. The battle ended with a YPG victory in July 2013.[20]

While many rebel groups clashed with the PYD, Jihadi and Salafi groups did so most consistently.[21] The YPG proved to be the only Kurdish militia able to effectively resist the fundamentalists.[22] While the YPG protected the Kurdish communities it was able to extract a price: it prevented the emergence of new, rival militias and forced existing ones to cooperate with or join the PYD forces on its terms.[23] This was how the Islamist attacks enabled the YPG to unite the Syrian Kurds under its banner[24] and caused[25] it to become the de facto army of the Syrian Kurds.[26][27][28][29][30]

2013: Kurdish control of Al-Yaarubiyah / Til Koçer

In October 2013, YPG fighters took control of Al-Yaarubiyah / Til Koçer in Syria following intense clashes with ISIL. The clashes lasted about three days, with the Til Koçer border gate to Iraq being taken in a major offensive launched on the night of 24 October.[31] PYD leader Saleh Muslim told Stêrk TV that this success created an alternative against efforts to hold the territory under embargo.[31] The explanation for this remark is that the other border-crossings with Iraq led to the Kurdistan Regional Government, while Al-Yaarubiyah still led to areas controled by the Iraqi government.

2014: Fight against ISIL

The inter-rebel conflict during the Syrian Civil War led to open war between the Free Syrian Army and ISIL in January 2014. The YPG collaborated with the FSA to fight ISIL in Ar-Raqqah province;[32] the group also formed an operations room with multiple FSA factions, called Euphrates Volcano.[33] However, the general outcome of this fight were huge advances by ISIL that separated the eastern part of Rojava from the main FSA rebels. ISIL followed up on its success by attacking the YPG and the FSA in Kobanî canton in March and fighting its way to the gates of Kobanî in September.

YPJ fighter 4 November 2014

The actual Siege of Kobanî approximately coincided with an escalation in the American-led intervention in Syria. This intervention had started with aiding the FSA against the government, but when the FSA was getting defeated by ISIL in eastern Syria, it escalated to bombing ISIL on Syrian territory.

With the world fearing another massacre in Kobanî, the American intervention unintentionally escalated further. The USA started to give close air support to the YPG, and in doing so, it started military cooperation (i.e. it allied itself) with one of the factions. While it expected that ISIL would quickly crush the YPG and the FSA, this did not seem to be a problem for the US.[34]

The YPG proved tougher than expected, and put up a surprising and determined resistance. For months the western media covered a long battle between an ISIL, whom committed genocide, and the YPG, whom employed female fighters and was isolated by Turkey. While it lasted, the YPG not often subject to criticism, and when it was over in March 2015 the U.S. and YPG had fought on the same side for half a year, and continued to cooperate.

YPJ fighters embrace after battle, 4 August 2015

Meanwhile, the situation had been stable in Afrin and Aleppo. The fight between the FSA and ISIL had led to a normalization in the relations between FSA and YPG since ultimo 2013. In February 2015, the YPG signed a judicial agreement with the Levant Front in Aleppo.[35]

Spring 2015: offensive operations with coalition support

Under other circumstances Turkish pressure might have stopped the cooperation between YPG and the U.S. after the Siege of Kobanî. However, in spring 2015 ISIL was about to capture Ramadi. The YPG was the only group that was able and willing to offensively engage and put pressure on ISIL and had built up a track record as a reliable military partner. With American close air support, offensives near Hasakah and from Hasakah westward culminated in the conquest of Tell Abyad, linking up Kobanî with Hasakah in July 2015.

With these offensives, the YPG had begun to make advances into areas that did not always have a Kurdish majority. When the YPG and the FSA entered the border town of Tell Abyad in June 2015, parts of the population fled the intense fighting and the airstrikes.[36] It is assumed these refugees included a significant number of ISIL collaborators, but it did not address the problem. According to observers, if the YPG wanted to act outside of Rojava proper, it could only do this as part of a broader force that included Arab factions.

Autumn 2015: foundation of the SDF

The Syrian Democratic Forces was established in Hasakah on 11 October 2015. It has its origins in the YPG-FSA collaboration against ISIL, that led to the establishment of the Euphrates Volcano joint operations room in 2014. Many of the partners are the same, and even the logo / flag with the Blue Euphrates has common traits. The difference is that Euphrates Volcano was about coordinating between Kurds and Arabs, while the SDF is an organisation of Kurds, Arabs and additionally Assyrians.

The first success of the SDF was the capture of the strategic ethnically Arab town of al-Hawl from ISIL during the al-Hawl offensive in November 2015. This was followed in December by the Tishrin Dam offensive. The dam was captured on 26 December. Participating forces included the YPG, the FSA group Army of Revolutionaries, the tribal group Al-Sanadid Forces and the Syriac Military Council. The coalition had some heavy weapons and was supported by intense U.S.-led airstrikes.[37] The capture of the hydroelectric dam also had positive effects on the economy of Rojava.[38]

2016: Turkish shelling

After the early 2016 successes of the Syrian Army in north Aleppo, the Army of Revolutionaries supported by the YPG moved into some rival FSA-held territories in the area. Turkish artillery then shelled the SDF near the Menagh Military Airbase.[39] and at other positions.[40] In a Turkish offensive against ISIL and the SDF, large numbers of Kurdish civilians and SDF fighters were killed as the USA and Turkey both urged the YPG to withdraw from their positions.

Foreign volunteers

Ex–U.S. Army soldier Jordan Matson was among the first foreign volunteers of the YPG. Injured by an ISIL suicide bomb, he developed the "Lions of Rojava" recruitment campaign for foreign volunteers[41] that was launched on 21 October 2014 as a Facebook page.[42][43] Subsequently, as of 11 June 2015, more than 400 volunteers from North America, Australia, Europe and South America joined the YPG,[44] including at least ten U.S. volunteers, three of which were U.S. Army veterans.[45][46][47][48] Han Chinese from the United Kingdom and China have also joined.[49]

One known Canadian was killed on November 4, 2015, who previously served with the Canadian Forces.[50][51] Six Western volunteers were killed in the battle for the town of Manbij from June to August 2016. A Portuguese fighter, Mario Nunes, was killed in June, Levi Jonathan "Jack" Shirley, from Colorado, US, was killed on July 14, Dean Carl Evans, born in Reading, UK, was killed on July 21, Martin Gruden, born in Ljubljana, Slovenia, was killed on July 27, Jordan MacTaggart, from Colorado, U.S., was killed on 3 August and William Savage, from Maryland, U.S., was killed on 10 August.[52][53][54][55] Fighting in Manbij on 24 November 2016, against advancing Turkish military and Turkish controlled FSA forces, caused the death of Michael Israel from California, U.S., a member of Industrial Workers of the World organization and Anton Leschek from Germany, due to Turkish airstrikes.[56]

Dozens of non-Kurdish Turks (from both Turkey and the European diaspora) have also joined.[45] The Turkish Marxist-Leninist Communist Party (MLKP) has been sending volunteers to fight in the YPG since 2012. At least four have been killed in battle as of February 2015—one during the Battle of Ras al-Ayn and three during the Siege of Kobanî. The party released a video in late January 2015 showing several Spanish- and German-speaking volunteers from Europe among its ranks in Jazira Canton; they were reorganised into the International Freedom Battalion on 10 June 2015.[57]

Several Australians, including former trade unionist and politician Matthew Gardiner,[58] have been involved with the YPG despite threats by Australia to prosecute any citizens involved in the Syrian Civil War.[59] Under Australian law it is a criminal offence to fight with any side in a foreign conflict.[60] On 26 February 2015, the death of the first foreign volunteer to be killed in action with the YPG was announced.[61] Ashley Johnston, 28, of Canberra, with Kurdish nom-de-guerre Heval Bagok, had travelled to Syrian Kurdistan in October 2014, volunteered as a humanitarian aid worker, and later decided to serve as a front-line fighter with the YPG.[59][62][63] The official command of YPG paid tribute after his death in action against ISIL.[64]

Equipment

Compared to other factions engaged in the Syrian Civil war, the YPG has not received significant foreign assistance in the form of weapons and military equipment. According to the YPG, circumstances led to their capture of less equipment from the Syrian Army than other opposition groups did. The below are estimates only based on the balance sheet that the YPG regularly publishes of its activities.[65]

Small arms

Name Country of origin Type Number Caliber Notes
Makarov pistol  Soviet Union Pistol Thousands 9×18mm
Browning Hi-Power  Belgium Pistol Thousands 9×19mm
Beretta M12  Italy Submachine Gun Thousands 9×19mm
M4 carbine  United States Assault rifle Thousands 5.56×45mm
M16 rifle  United States Assault rifle Thousands 5.56×45mm
Zagros Rifle[66] Rojava Anti-materiel rifle Hundreds 12.7×108mm self made anti-materiel rifle
AK-47  Soviet Union Assault rifle Tens of Thousands 7.62×39mm
AKM  Soviet Union Assault rifle Tens of Thousands 7.62×39mm
Type 56  China Assault rifle Tens of Thousands 7.62×39mm
PM md. 63/65 Romania Socialist Republic of Romania Assault rifle Tens of Thousands 7.62×39mm
MPi-KM  East Germany Assault rifle Tens of Thousands 7.62×39mm
AK-63  Hungary Assault rifle Tens of Thousands 7.62×39mm
Dragunov sniper rifle  Soviet Union Sniper rifle Unknown 7.62×54mmR
PSL (rifle) Romania Socialist Republic of Romania Sniper rifle Unknown 7.62×54mmR
Rheinmetall MG 3  Germany General-purpose machine gun Few 7.62×51mm
PK machine gun  Soviet Union General-purpose machine gun Hundreds 7.62×54mmR
Zastava M84  Yugoslavia General-purpose machine gun Hundreds 7.62×54mmR
DShK  Soviet Union Heavy machine gun Dozens 12.7×108mm
KPV heavy machine gun  Soviet Union Heavy machine gun A few dozen 14.5×114mm

Anti-tank weaponry

Name Country of origin Type Number Caliber Notes
RPG-7  Soviet Union Rocket-propelled grenade Thousands 40mm YPG's RPG are supposed to be of this type
Type 69 RPG  China Rocket-propelled grenade Thousands 40mm
M79 Osa  Yugoslavia Anti-tank weapon Few 90mm
FGM-148 Javelin  United States Anti-tank missile ? missile First spotted in YPG hands in February 2016
Mk 19  United States grenade launcher ? 40×53mm
IED Rojava Improvised explosive device Thousands N/a

Mortar

Name Country of origin Type Number Caliber Notes
82-BM-37  Soviet Union Mortar A dozen 82mm captured, SAA had 200
M1938 mortar  Soviet Union Mortar A dozen 120mm captured, SAA had 300
120-PM-43 mortar  Soviet Union Mortar A dozen 120mm captured, SAA had 400
Improvised mortars Syria Syria Improvised mortars Several Various Captured from Syrian Opposition
Hell Cannon Syria Syria Improvised mortars Several Various Captured from Free Syrian Army

Unarmored vehicles

YPG pickup trucks in Tell Tamer
Name Country of origin Type Number Notes
Toyota Hilux  Japan Improvised fighting vehicle Thousands
Nissan Navara  Japan Improvised fighting vehicle Thousands
Volkswagen Amarok  Germany Improvised fighting vehicle Thousands

Armored vehicles

YPG Humvees during the 2015 Al-Hawl offensive
A YPG T-55 in Tell Tamer
Name Country of origin Type # in Afrin # in East Rojava Notes
Humvee  United States Armoured fighting vehicle 0 Dozens Captured from ISIS
T-55 with 2*14.5MG[67]  Soviet Union Main battle tank 0 1 Well designed local variant with twin 14.5MG, used in eastern Syria
T-55  Soviet Union Main battle tank 1[68] 6? Captured from the Menagh Military Airbase.
T-72[69]  Soviet Union Main battle tank 2[68] 0 At least 1 used in the Northern Aleppo offensive (2016), 1 destroyed by the Falcons of Mount Zawiya Brigade[70]

Foreign aid

Because the YPG operates in a landlocked territory, rival opposition groups as well as the Turkish and Syrian government were able to physically prevent foreign aid from reaching it. The YPG's seizure of Til Koçer in October 2013 (cf. above) created an overland connection to more or less friendly groups in Iraq, but could not change the even more fundamental problem that the YPG had no allies willing to provide equipment.

United States

The United States provided the YPG with air support during the Siege of Kobanî[71] and during later campaigns, helping the YPG defend territory against attacks by the Islamic State.[72] Turkey has criticised US support.[73]

The YPG also received 27 bundles totalling 24 tons of small arms and ammunition and 10 tons of medical supplies from the United States and Iraqi Kurdistan during the Siege.[74]

On October 11, 2015, the U.S. began an operation to airdrop 120 tons of military supplies to the YPG and its local Arab and Turkmen allies to fight ISIL north of Raqqa. The first airdrop consisted of 112 pallets of ammunition and 'other items like hand grenades' totaling 50 tons.[75] However, statements that the aid does not contain TOW's or Anti-Aircraft weapons make it clear that the U.S. continues to have serious regard for the interests of Turkey, who has warned against continued U.S. support for the YPG.

U.S. aid to the YPG continued in late October with a call for the deployment of up to 50 U.S. special forces and an enhanced air campaign to support the YPG and local militia groups in their fight against ISIS.[76][77] Some of these special forces participated in the al-Shaddadi offensive (2016) and coordinated airstrikes against ISIL.[78]

Russia

With Russia's entrance into the war in late 2015 backing the Syrian government, some reports have alleged that the YPG coordinated with or received weapons from Russia, with rival opposition groups claiming that the timing and targeting of Russian airstrikes were suspiciously advantageous to the Kurdish militias.[79]

Despite this, the YPG officials denied any coordination with Russia.[80]

Diplomatic relations

Russia's position towards the YPG is not clear, and the USA actively supports it, but their diplomatic relations with the PYD are the opposite. In January 2016 Russia pushed for the inclusion of the PYD in the Geneva talks.[81] In February 2016 the PYD opened a branch representative office in Moscow.[82] In contrast to this the YPG denied any coordination with officials from the U.S. State Department. The YPG would like to open a representative branch in the USA, but in March 2016 interview its leader implied that it was not allowed to do so.[83]

War crimes allegations

Child soldiers

In June 2015, a report by the United Nations Secretary General found that 24 minors under age of 18 had been recruited to fight with YPG.[84]

In response, Kurdish security forces (YPG and Asayish) began receiving human rights training from Geneva Call and other international organisations.[85] In October 2015 the YPG demobilized 21 minors under the age of 18 from the military service in its ranks.[86]

Ethnic cleansing

In June 2015 the Turkish government alleged that the YPG was carrying out an ethnic cleansing as part of a plan to join the Jazira and Kobanî cantons into a single territory.[87] Qasim al-Khatib, a Syrian National Council (SNC) member who headed a delegation from the SNC to investigate allegations about the displacement of Arab civilians, said there was no evidence of Arabs or Turkmen having been displaced.[88]

Forced displacement

In October 2015, Amnesty International published a report[89] with claims that the YPG had driven at least 100 families from northern Syria and that in the villages of Asaylem and Husseiniya it had demolished resident homes. The report was made by Amnesty visiting the area contained in the report. It made local observations of destruction, and collected testimonies from former and actual residents of al-Hasakeh and ar-Raqqa governorates. It found cases of YPG fighters forcibly displacing residents and using fire and bulldozers to raze homes and other structures.[90][91]

Forced displacement of civilians and destruction of civilian property is not a war crime per se. These acts only becomes a war crime when there is no "imperative military necessity" for them. Amnesty International claims the report documents cases in which there was no such justification.[92] It furthermore claims that the circumstances of some of these displacements suggested that they were carried out: in retaliation for people's perceived sympathies with, or family ties to, suspected members of ISIL or other armed groups,[93] constituting "collective punishment, which is a violation of international humanitarian law" .

In interviews YPG spokespersons acknowledged that a number of families were in fact displaced. However, they placed the number at no more than 25,[94] and claim military necessity. They stated that the family of the terrorists communicates with them and therefore had to be removed from dangerous areas,[95] and that ISIL often uses civilians to plant car bombs or carry out other attacks on the YPG.[96] By describing the events in Hammam al-Turkman before the village got evacuated the report itself inadvertently supports these claims of military necessity.[97]

The U.S. State Department reacted by starting an inquiry into the allegations[98] Its initial reaction to the report was quite sceptical, claiming it had to determine any veracity to the claims, but showed concern by calling for any administrator in the area to rule with respect for all groups regardless of ethnicity. The fact that the report does not make any claim of the YPG targeting people based on ethnicity was probably one of the reasons why they did not take it seriously, especially when there was dozens of similar reports, where the Syrian government, Al-Nusra Front and Free Syrian Army were accused of much worse war crimes.

Relations with Turkey

Turkey consider the YPG as a part of the PKK, which Turkey sees as a terrorist organization. The PKK is Turkey-based militant organization which is a part of the Kurdish-Turkish conflict (1978-present).[99]

See also

References

  1. ↑ "PYD announces surprise interim government in Syria's Kurdish regions". Rudaw. 13 November 2013. Retrieved 9 October 2014.
  2. ↑ Perry, Tom (15 August 2015). "Syrian Kurds now say they now control territory the size of Qatar and Kuwait combined". Business Insider.
  3. ↑ "Top YPG commander assassinated in north Syria". Now News. 10 November 2016.
  4. ↑ http://www.diclehaber.com/en/news/content/view/431906?from=919196554
  5. ↑ Ahmad, Rozh (6 August 2012). "A rare glimpse into Kurdish armed forces in Syrian Kurdistan". Rudaw. Erbil, Iraq.
  6. 1 2 3 Stephens, Michael (11 September 2014). "Analysis: YPG – The Islamic State's worst enemy". IHS Jane's 360. Retrieved 13 March 2016.
  7. ↑ "Analysis: YPG - the Islamic State's worst enemy".
  8. ↑ "Kurdish women turning Kobani into a living 'hell' for Islamic State". teleSUR TV. Caracas, Venez. 14 October 2014. Retrieved 2 December 2014.
  9. ↑ Trieb, Erin (August 2014). "Meet the Kurdish Women Fighting ISIS in Syria". NBC News. Retrieved 19 March 2016.
  10. ↑ http://carnegie-mec.org/diwan/48526?lang=en
  11. ↑ Caves, John (December 6, 2012), "Syrian Kurds and the Democratic Union Party (PYD)" (PDF), Institute for the Study of War: 4, 5
  12. ↑ "Who are the Kurds?". BBC. 2016-03-14. Retrieved 2016-09-29.
  13. ↑ Gold, Danny (31 October 2012). "Meet the YPG, the Kurdish militia that doesn't want help from anyone". VICE. Retrieved 9 October 2014. A member of YPG’s central command … said that the YPG formed in 2004 shortly after the Qamishlo riots, when a number of Kurdish youth realized that they needed to be able to defend themselves more efficiently. They did not officially declare themselves until the revolution started in 2011.
  14. ↑ International Crisis Group (8 May 2014). "Flight of Icarus? The PYD's Precarious Rise in Syria" (PDF). Retrieved 20 March 2016. (Citing a 2013 interview with a YPG deserter): I was in the YPG since before the uprising, but I have left. Since last year, at least 400 new PKK military personnel came from Turkey and Iran. They are not Syrians, and they want to control everything. They don’t care about Syrians. They make deals with the regime and [Iraqi PM] Maliki. This is why I left.
  15. ↑ "A look at Turkey's friends and foes in the Syria conflict". AP. 18 February 2016. The Kurdish-dominated armed wing of the … PYD. It was formed in 2004 as a militia to combat Syrian government forces… After the war in Syria started, the YPG largely concentrated its efforts on fighting [IS], leading to charges from Turkey that it is allied with Syrian government.
  16. ↑ Hevian, Rodi (Fall 2013). "The resurrection of Syrian Kurdish politics" (PDF). Middle East Review of International Affairs. Interdisciplinary Center Herzliya, Isr.: Rubin Center. 17 (3): 48. Members of the Kurdish National Council: [4.] The Kurdish Democratic Progressive Party in Syria (KDPP)... It is also one of the few movements participating in the YPG...
  17. ↑ Ahmed, Hevidar (25 July 2012). "Liberated Kurdish cities in Syrian Kurdistan move into next phase". Rudaw. Erbil, Iraq. Retrieved 28 July 2012.
  18. ↑ "Kurds Give Ultimatum to Syrian Security Forces". Rudaw. 21 July 2012. Retrieved 9 October 2014.
  19. ↑ "The Kurdish Protection Units have formed a new brigade in the Al–Bab region". Scientia Humana. 4 December 2012. Archived from the original on 8 January 2013. Retrieved 18 December 2013. Kurdish Information Center
  20. ↑ "Kurds expel jihadists from flashpoint Syrian town: NGO". AFP. 17 July 2013. Retrieved 13 February 2015.
  21. ↑ International Crisis Group (8 May 2014). "Flight of Icarus? The PYD's Precarious Rise in Syria" (PDF). Retrieved 20 March 2016. While rebel groups from across the ideological spectrum have clashed with the PYD, jihadi and Salafi groups have done so most aggressively and consistently
  22. ↑ "YPG Commander: Kurds Are Bulwark Against Islamic Extremism in Syria". Rudaw. 22 July 2013. Retrieved 9 October 2014.
  23. ↑ International Crisis Group (8 May 2014). "Flight of Icarus? The PYD's Precarious Rise in Syria" (PDF). Retrieved 20 March 2016. The PYD’s growing influence largely has come at the expense of other Kurdishgroups. In particular, it has prevented emergence of new, rival militias while forcing existing ones to cooperate with or join PYD forces on their terms
  24. ↑ International Crisis Group (8 May 2014). "Flight of Icarus? The PYD's Precarious Rise in Syria" (PDF). Retrieved 20 March 2016. Crisis Group interview, Erbil, 4 July 2013: Intensified Islamist attacks in Kurdish areas shifted Kurdish public opinion toward the PYD. A resident of Tell Tamr, a partly Kurdish town targeted by armed Islamist groups, said, “in the aftermath of the battle of Ras al-Ayn, Islamists entered Tell Tamr. They began kidnapping and killing Kurds. I am not a YPG supporter, and I will never be. But if it weren’t for the YPG, not a single Kurd would be left in the [al-] Jazeera region”. Crisis Group interview, Erbil, July 2013. A journalist working for a pro-KDP channel commented: “I was the most critical person against the PYD. But at the moment, I have to admit that they are saving the people from the worst”.
  25. ↑ International Crisis Group (8 May 2014). "Flight of Icarus? The PYD's Precarious Rise in Syria" (PDF). Retrieved 20 March 2016. "At the same time, Ankara turned a blind eye to the Islamist fighters crossing from Turkey into Syria, viewing them – in addition to helping bring down the Assad regime – as potential counterweights to the PYD. The strategy backfired; the PYD not only gained territory, but also bolstered its appeal among Kurds as their only protector from jihadis. In September 2013, a Turkish official acknowledged: “We made the PYD stronger by trying to undermine it”
  26. ↑ N. Abboud, Samer. Syria. John Wiley & Sons. ISBN 9780745698014. Retrieved 23 March 2016.
  27. ↑ "Kurdish Woman Leading Battle Against Islamic State in Kobane: Activists". Retrieved 23 March 2016.
  28. ↑ "Woman leads Kurds in battle against Islamic State in Kobane: activists". Retrieved 23 March 2016.
  29. ↑ "YPG: The Kurdish militia battling IS jihadists for Syria town". Retrieved 23 March 2016.
  30. ↑ "Kurdish woman leads fight against ISIS in Kobane". Retrieved 23 March 2016.
  31. 1 2 "YPG takes control of Til Koçer". Firat News Agency. 27 October 2013. Archived from the original on 9 December 2013.
  32. ↑ "FSA and YPG cooperate against ISIL militants in Syria's Tel Abyad". ARA News. 12 May 2014. Retrieved 9 October 2014.
  33. ↑ "YPG and FSA form a joint military chamber to combat ISIS in Syria". ARA News. 12 September 2014. Retrieved 9 October 2014.
  34. ↑ "U.S. military: Airstrikes against ISIS won't save key city of Kobani". CNN. 9 Oct 2014. Retrieved 5 November 2016.
  35. ↑ "KURDISH YPG AND JABHAT AL-SHAMIYA AGREEMENT ON JUDICIARY COOPERATION IN ALEPPO". Syrian Rebellion Observatory. 5 February 2015.
  36. ↑ Pitarakis, Lefteris; Mroue, Bassem (14 June 2015). "Thousands of Syrians flee into Turkey amid intense fighting". AP. Thousands of Syrians cut through a border fence and crossed over into Turkey … fleeing intense fighting … between Kurdish fighters and jihadis.
  37. ↑ "U.S.-backed alliance captures key dam from Islamic State – alliance spokesman". Reuters. 28 December 2015. Colonel Talal Selo ... said the rapid advance overnight by thousands of troops from the Democratic Forces of Syria had brought the dam ... under their control on Saturday.... Selo said ... the latest round of fighting ... involved several thousand fighters from the Democratic Forces of Syria with heavy armour.
  38. ↑ "Photos of Tishrin Dam, Liberated from ISIS". 1 February 2016. Tishrin is an incredible dam, not least of all because of the fact that it sits cradled in a beautiful lush valley, in an otherwise dry and arid land. But also because of what Tishrin implies for the people of Rojava who have survived for the past two years under incredible economic and political conditions, exacerbated significantly by lack of access to water and electricity which Tishrin provides.
  39. ↑ "Turkish forces shell Syrian air base captured by Kurds". Reuters. 13 February 2016. Retrieved 13 February 2016.
  40. ↑ Dearden, Lizzie (13 February 2016). "Turkey shells Kurdish fighters in Aleppo province as Bashar al-Assad's forces continue to advance on rebels". The Independent. London. Retrieved 14 February 2016.
  41. ↑ Jennifer Percy (30 September 2015). "Meet the American Vigilantes Who Are Fighting ISIS". Retrieved 15 December 2015.
  42. ↑ "The Lions of Rojava". Facebook. Retrieved 15 November 2014.
  43. ↑ "Kobani Kurds Use Facebook To Recruit Foreign Fighters In Struggle Against IS". Radio Free Europe Radio Liberty. 13 November 2014. Retrieved 15 November 2014.
  44. ↑ "SOHR". Syriahr.com. 11 June 2015. Retrieved 15 November 2015.
  45. 1 2 "Western "comrades" join Kurds, Arabs, secularists, Yezidis, and Syriac Christians against Islamic State". Your Middle East. 29 October 2014. Retrieved 13 February 2015.
  46. ↑ "Exclusive: American explains why he's fighting ISIL". USA Today. 7 October 2014. Retrieved 23 October 2014.
  47. ↑ "The US volunteers who fight with Syria's Kurds". BBC. 23 October 2014. Retrieved 23 October 2014.
  48. ↑ "A Divorced Father-of-Two from Ohio Is Fighting the Islamic State in Syria". Vice News. 23 October 2014. Retrieved 13 February 2015.
  49. ↑ "The Chinese man fighting Islamic State with the YPG". BBC News.
  50. ↑ Stewart Bell (23 February 2015). "Second Canadian vet battling ISIS: Brandon Glossop felt need to go after Ottawa, Quebec attacks". National Post. Retrieved 9 July 2015.
  51. ↑ "Unique repatriation route planned for Canadian killed fighting ISIS". CityNews. Retrieved 29 November 2015.
  52. ↑ http://ekurd.net/american-dies-kurdish-syria-2016-07-22
  53. ↑ http://rudaw.net/english/middleeast/syria/020820163
  54. ↑ http://kurdishquestion.com/article/3343-american-jordan-mactaggart-killed-fighting-islamic-state-in-ypg-ranks
  55. ↑ http://aranews.net/2016/08/us-volunteer-praised-humility-dies-fight-isis-syria/
  56. ↑ http://kurdishquestion.com/article/3662-international-ypg-volunteers-fighting-isis-killed-by-turkish-warplanes-updated
  57. ↑ "Enternasyonal devrimciler: Her dilden devrimi savunuyoruz" (in Turkish). Etkin Haber Ajansı. 28 January 2015. Retrieved 11 February 2015.
  58. ↑ "Matthew Gardiner confirmed to be fighting Islamic State with Kurds". NTNews. Retrieved 9 July 2015.
  59. 1 2 "Australian man defends his actions fighting against Islamic State". Xinhua (Beijing). 11 June 2015. Former international junior bench press champion Ashley Dyball … wrote on Facebook, ‘The s--- you see here is nothing like you see on the bias news reports, the Islamic state must be stopped and if it means I can’t come home f--- it.’ … Dyball faces prosecution if he returns.
  60. ↑ Lauren Williams. "Awkward contradictions in Australian foreign-fighter laws". lowyinterpreter.org. Retrieved 29 November 2015.
  61. ↑ Michael Safi, " Kurdish militia pays tribute to Ashley Johnston, killed fighting with its forces", The Guardian, 2 March 2015.
  62. ↑ "British Chinese volunteer fighting alongside Kurds against ISIS in Syria becomes a weibo hero". South China Morning Post. 28 May 2015. Retrieved 9 July 2015.
  63. ↑ Volunteers from China, US and UK join Kurdish forces to fight ISIS (photos)
  64. ↑ Safi, Michael (2 March 2015). "Kurdish militia pays tribute to Ashley Johnston, killed fighting with its forces". theguardian.com. Retrieved 23 June 2016.
  65. ↑ "'Balance of the War Against Hostile Groups in Rojava, Northern Syria: Year 2015'". March 23, 2016. Archived from the original on 26 January 2016. Retrieved 23 March 2016.
  66. ↑ "Kurdish Zagros Gen 2 - The Firearm Blog". 2015-02-10. Retrieved 2016-07-08.
  67. ↑ "YPG with IFV on T-55 chassis in Eastern Syria". Live UA Map. 6 March 2016.
  68. 1 2 "YPG Tank Taburu & Düşmanlar Korkun (Entry of 3*T-72 and 1*T-55 captured from Menagh in Afrin)". Afrin, Syria. 8 August 2013. Retrieved 28 March 2016.
  69. ↑ "Syria: Kurdish women fighters commandeer tank in battle over Menagh air base". IB Times. 11 February 2016.
  70. ↑ oryxspioenkop (29 March 2016). "By losing just one T-72 near Azaz today, the YPG lost 25% of its armour in the Afrin canton. 2 T-72s, 1 T-55 remain." (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  71. ↑ http://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-29526783
  72. ↑ https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2015/dec/01/syria-airstrikes-everything-you-need-to-know
  73. ↑ http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-35541003
  74. ↑ "PUKmedia یەکێتیی نیشتمانیی کوردستان". pukmedia.com.
  75. ↑ "'U.S. delivers 50 tons of ammunition to Syria rebel groups'". October 12, 2015. Retrieved 1 February 2016.
  76. ↑ Steele, Jonathan (3 December 2015). "The Syrian Kurds are winning!". New York Review of Books. Turkey had told ... the US that YPG forces would not be permitted to proceed beyond the Euphrates. In an apparent rebuke ... Kerry [said]: “We’re … enhancing our air campaign in order to help drive Da’esh, which once dominated the Syria–Turkey border, out of the last seventy-mile stretch...” Review of Out of Nowhere: The Kurds of Syria in Peace and War, by Michael M. Gunter.
  77. ↑ "'Obama orders US special forces to 'assist' fight against Isis in Syria '". October 30, 2015. Retrieved 1 February 2016.
  78. ↑ "EXCLUSIVE: Interethnic coalition takes on the IS group in Syria". France 24 (Youtube). 22 April 2016.
  79. ↑ "Britain says uneasy after evidence of Kurdish coordination with Syria and Russia". Reuters UK. Retrieved 2016-03-19.
  80. ↑ "Kurdish fighters in Aleppo deny receiving Russian military support - ARA News". ARA News. Retrieved 2016-03-19.
  81. ↑ "Russia: Kurds should be included in Geneva talks". Rudaw. Retrieved 2016-03-20.
  82. ↑ "Syrian Kurdistan mission opens in Moscow". rt.com. Retrieved 23 June 2016.
  83. ↑ "Salih Muslim: Time Has Proved Us Right". The Kurdistan Tribune. Retrieved 2016-03-20. The West is fully aware that the Syrian Democratic Forces are an important and reliable active on the ground, hence the military support. Unfortunately, they have not yet approached us at a political level while they keep their ties with Saudi Arabia, Turkey ... However, we do hope political relations to materialize among us in the future.
  84. ↑ U.N. Security Council (5 June 2015). Report of the Secretary-General: Children and armed conflict (Report). para. 191. Actual numbers are expected to be higher.... A number of pro-Government groups, including Hizbullah, also reportedly recruited children in small numbers.
  85. ↑ Perry, Tom; Malla, Naline (10 September 2015). "Western states train Kurdish force in Syria, force's leader says". Reuters. Amnesty International this month faulted the Kurdish administration for arbitrary detentions and unfair trials.... [Ciwan] Ibrahim said ... efforts were underway to improve its human rights record.... The Geneva Call ... promotes good treatment of civilians in war zones...
  86. ↑ YPG demobilizes 21 children under the age of 18 from the military service in its ranks (Report). Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. 28 October 2015. Archived from the original on 2015-11-21.
  87. ↑ "Turkey accuses Kurdish forces of 'ethnic cleansing' in Syria". Agence France-Presse. 16 Jun 2015. President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Sunday said he was troubled by the advance of Kurdish forces, saying they could in the future create a structure to threaten Turkey.
  88. ↑ "'Kurds liberated Tel Abyad, no displacement against Arabs': Syrian opposition figure". ARANEWS. June 26, 2015. Retrieved 27 November 2015.
  89. ↑ "We had nowhere else to go, Forced displacement and demolition in northern Syria" (PDF). October 2015. In July and August 2015 Amnesty International investigated the forced displacement of residents from 10 villages and towns in areas under the control of the Autonomous Administration
  90. ↑ "Syria: US ally's razing of villages amounts to war crimes". Amnesty International. 13 October 2015. Retrieved 17 October 2015.
  91. ↑ "Syria Kurds 'razing villages seized from IS' - Amnesty". BBC News. 13 October 2015. Of 225 buildings visible [in Husseiniya] in June 2014, only 14 were still standing by June 2015.
  92. ↑ "We had nowhere else to go, Forced displacement and demolition in northern Syria" (PDF). October 2015. this report documents cases in which there was no such justification
  93. ↑ "We had nowhere else to go, Forced displacement and demolition in northern Syria" (PDF). October 2015. The circumstances of some of the instances of forced displacement documented in this report suggest that they were carried out in retaliation for people's perceived sympathies with, or family ties to, suspected members of IS or other armed groups. This would constitute collective punishment, which is a violation of international humanitarian law.
  94. ↑ Amnesty International (2015-10-13), "We had nowhere else to go": Forced displacement and demolitions in northern Syria, retrieved 2016-03-19
  95. ↑ "We had nowhere else to go, Forced displacement and demolition in northern Syria" (PDF). October 2015. In some dangerous areas there are some specific cases that are very small, resulting from the terrorist threat, where families were sent away from the area ... Only 25 families were forced to leave across Rojava ... (They are told) 'Folks, remove your things please, and if you leave from this area until the war ends it will be a good thing ...' You have terrorists in al-Raqqa and their families – the uncle, and brother, and sister – are here, and they are in communication, giving them information. We were forced to distance these families. Not detain them. Distance them. Take them outside of the area.
  96. ↑ "We had nowhere else to go, Forced displacement and demolition in northern Syria" (PDF). October 2015. He added that IS was benefiting from the presence of civilians in these areas, and using them to plant car bombs or carry out other attacks on the YPG.
  97. ↑ "We had nowhere else to go, Forced displacement and demolition in northern Syria" (PDF). October 2015. After the YPG took the village, on 15 June, a car bomb killed three YPG fighters 4km from Hammam al-Turkman at a checkpoint in Damishli. The following day there were skirmishes between the YPG and IS in the village before IS was pushed back. A second car bomb went off at a YPG checkpoint at the health clinic in the village on 18 June killing a YPG fighter and injuring one civilian and three days later IS shot and killed a second YPG fighter near the clinic. It was after the death of this fighter that the residents were told by the YPG that they had to leave the village.
  98. ↑ Saeed, Yerevan (14 October 2015). "US voices concern over allegations of rights violations by YPG". Rudaw. Retrieved 20 October 2015. We’ll look closely at all these accusations to determine whether there's any veracity to the claims ... We call on those who actually are or will participate in administering these areas to do so inclusively and with respect for all groups regardless of ethnicity
  99. ↑ ""PYD ve YPG Terör Örgütleri PKK'nın Atığıdır"". 15 October 2016. Retrieved 15 October 2016.

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