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Iran
- The coronavirus continues to spread throughout Iran and has now caused at least 227 deaths in the nation’s Kurdish region. Kurdish activists criticized Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei for refusing to accept aid from the United States and calling the pandemic “US-made.” Iran remains afflicted by a significant shortage of medicine, protective equipment, and ventilators and has seen a 95 percent increase in deaths from the virus over the past week. At the same time, Iran’s Kurdish population canceled all planned Newroz celebrations due to imposed lockdowns ostensibly meant to combat the virus’s spread.
- Iranian authorities killed one Kurdish border porter (Kolbar) and wounded another last week. On Tuesday, Iranian border guards ambushed a group of Kolbars near Sardasht and severely injured a Kolbar named Mohammed Qadiri. Also, on Tuesday, Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) killed a Kolbar named Sirwan Sharifi near Baneh. Finally, according to the Kurdistan Human Rights Association, a 22-year-old Kolbar, Azad Omari, died of hypothermia near Khoy.
- The Kurdish Hengaw Organization for Human Rights released a report announcing Iranian authorities had arrested 3,000 Kurds in 2019 for charges related to political activities, sectarian discrimination, and the Kolbar profession. The report also showed a sizable number of Kurds were arrested following November 2019’s anti-government protests.
Iraq
- The Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) Ministry of Health reported there were a total of 85 coronavirus cases in Iraqi Kurdistan and announced the region’s second death from the disease. Meanwhile, the KRG extended region wide lockdowns and curfews until April 1. Security checkpoints have been established in the region’s cities to prevent the movement of vehicles and pedestrians, though exceptions are made for some farmers and government-approved employees. Concurrently, though Iraqi Kurdistan continues to permit the arrival of some civilian airliners, arriving passengers are quarantined for two weeks.
- Iraq’s Kurdish leadership expressed no official position of support or opposition for Iraqi President Barham Salih’s decision to task Adnan al-Zurufi with forming a new cabinet. Al-Zurufi’s formation of the cabinet has been stalled by the coronavirus outbreak and faces rejection from Iranian-backed militias and Iraq’s pro-Iran political parties.
Syria
- The Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (AANES) announced a two-week lockdown and curfew as a first step towards stemming the spread of the coronavirus. The AANES also shutdown border crossings with the Syrian regime, who announced its first case last week, and called for the imposition of restrictions on individuals traveling from Iran and Turkey.
- On the first anniversary of the physical defeat of the ISIS (Da’esh) caliphate in 2019, Combined Joint Task Force Operation Inherent Resolve (CJTF-OIR) Commanding General Lieutenant General Pat White released a statement to “honor and remember the many sacrifices of the Iraqi Security Forces, Syrian Democratic Forces, and Global Coalition to defeat Da’esh.” General White also added the US remains “committed to supporting our partners and ensuring the enduring defeat of Da’esh.” The AANES had previously described the victory over Da’esh as a “victory for humanity.” Likewise, on Monday, US Senator Lindsey Graham announced that he spoke with Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) General Commander Mazloum Abdi and said, “It is in our national security interests to continue to partner with the SDF who helped destroy the Caliphate.”
- Turkish occupation forces in Sari Kani (Ras Al Ain) again cut the water supply from the Aluk water plant to the rest of Syria’s Kurdish region. UNICEF Representative in Syria Fran Equiza expressed concern regarding the Turkish move as it “puts 460,000 people at risk as efforts ramp up to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.”
- Joint Russian-Turkish military patrols continued near Kobani for the second week in a row after both sides reached a ceasefire agreement in Idlib on March 5. Meanwhile, Turkish-backed jihadists attacked Um Kaif village near the Christian town Tal Tamer and several villages near Ain Essa on Monday. No casualties have been reported from these incidents so far.
Turkey
- On Monday, the Turkish government removed eight more elected Kurdish mayors and replaced them with government trustees in Diyarbakir Province’s Silvan, Ergani, Lice and Egil districts, Bitlis Province’s Güroymak District, Siirt Province’s Gökçebağ city, Iğdır Province’s Halfeli town, and Batman Municipality. As in previous cases, the government’s move angered Turkey’s Kurdish population and the pro-Kurdish Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP). The HDP’s Foreign Affairs Commission denounced the removal of the mayors in saying, “Instead of fighting coronavirus AKP [ruling Party of Justice and Development] fights Kurds.” The Turkish government has now sacked a total of 40 elected officials since local elections were last held on March 31, 2019.
- In Adana, the Turkish authorities arrested a number of people for social media posts criticizing the government for not doing enough to stop the spread of the coronavirus in Turkey. On Monday, Turkish police arrested a dozen Kurds in Bingol and Suruc. Meanwhile, Human Rights Watch called upon the Turkish government to “protect all prisoners from pandemic.”