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Iran
- On Friday, anti-government protests peaked after days of protests over Isfahan’s drought, especially its primary river, the Zayandeh River. According to Iranian rights groups, the security forces arrested 120 protesters and three protesters were allegedly killed. Activists posted violent videos of security forces shooting and beating demonstrators. The US State Department said it is “deeply concerned about the violent crackdown against peaceful protestors.” The hardliner Iranian cleric Ahmad Alam al-Huda said, “The problem of the water will not be solved with demonstration, but with rain prayers.” Iranian authorities’ water policies also affected the Kurdish provinces and regions, including cutting off the water of several rivers in the Kurdistan region of Iraq.
- The exiled Democratic Party of Iranian Kurdistan (KDPI) accused the Iranian authorities of cyber-attacks on its media outlet and social media account. The KDPI’s outlet, Kurdistan Media, said, “it’s not the first time for the Iranian regime to launch such (an) attack,” accusing the authorities of also creating fake accounts under the KDPI names to spread “false news.”
- At least six Kurdish border workers (Kolbars) were injured last week by the Iranian border guards. The Hengaw Organization for Human Rights reported that four of the wounded Kolbars fell into an ambush by the Iranian guards near Nowsud. The two others were injured in Urmia and Piranshahr. Additionally, the Iranian security forces arrested three Kolbars in Marivan on Friday.
- A 25-year old Kurdish migrant, Baxtyar Anwar, died from freezing temperatures on the border of Belarus and Poland last Monday. Anwar was originally from Iranian Kurdistan’s Sanandaj (Sen), but his family was forcibly relocated to Iraq by the Iranian regime in the 1980s.
Iraq
- ISIS (Dae’sh) terrorists launched more attacks on Peshmerga forces in the disputed territories. On Saturday night, Da’esh terrorists clashed with the Peshmerga forces in the Kolajo subdistrict, near Kifri district. As a result, five Peshmerga were killed by an IED targeting their Humvee while deployed to reinforce the frontline clashes. Five other Peshmergas were injured during the clashes. The US-led Coalition denounced the attack and vowed more support for the Peshmerga forces. On Sunday, another Da’esh attack was foiled by the Peshmerga forces near Kifri. On Monday morning, the Ministry of Peshmerga announced a security operation near Kolajo, searching for Da’esh hideouts. However, Da’esh terrorists launched another attack on Monday night near the Bawashaswar dam, killing two more Peshmergas and wounding two. The disputed territories remain unstable, and since October 16, 2017, the terror group has been operating significantly there.
- Hundreds more Kurdish migrants returned to the Kurdistan Region after weeks of being trapped on the Belarusian-Polish borders. However, several hundred more remain in Belarus and await either returning to Kurdistan or crossing into Poland. On Wednesday, at least 27 migrants drowned after their raft sank in the Channel between France and Britain. More than half of the victims were Kurds. One survivor accused the British coast guard of refusing to help the sinking boat.
- After visiting Tehran, Mikhail Bogdanov, the Russian Special Presidential Envoy for the Middle East and Africa, Deputy Foreign Minister arrived in Baghdad today to discuss the “regional situation and all issues of mutual interest” with Iraqi officials. Bogdanov is visiting Erbil as well. Bogdanov said he discussed “all Middle Eastern issues” with Iranian officials in Tehran.
- A Frankfurt court sentenced an Iraqi Da’esh terrorist to life in prison for partaking in the Yazidi Genocide, including allowing a child to die of thirst.
Syria
- The Syrian Democratic Council delegation headed by its leader Ilham Ahmed concluded their visit to Moscow after meeting with top Russian diplomats, including Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov. In a press release, the Russian Foreign Ministry said the meeting discussed the situation in Syria, and “special attention was paid to the task of promoting a political settlement in Syria based on UN Security Council Resolution.” Russia is attempting to launch another round of talks between the Assad Regime and the Kurdish-led Autonomous Administration of North and East of Syria (AANES). The Syrian Kurds repeatedly accused the Assad Regime of lacking a solution to grant any right for the minorities and the region as talks between the two sides have been ongoing since 2016.
- On Saturday, a car bomb killed three civilians, including two women and a child, in Manbij city. At least five people were wounded, among those two local security members (Asayesh). Separately, the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) said it foiled an attack by Turkish-proxies near Ayn Essa. The SDF said Turkish forces and their proxies attacked two villages and shelled areas near the M4 highway.
- Afrin Activists Network (AAN) released its November report, which includes more violations by Turkish proxies in the occupied Afrin region. According to the AAN report, the Turkish proxies killed three Kurds including one death during torture, kidnapped more than 71 persons, built three mosques on Kurdish-owned lands, and made changes to seven archaeological sites.
Turkey
- The Turkish government’s isolation of the imprisoned Kurdish leader Abdullah Ocalan continues as his defense team was rejected another visit permit. The Pro-Kurdish Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) called for ending the isolation since it affects “the peace of the country and the solution of the Kurdish problem.” Ocalan’s representative, the Arin law firm, said their recent “immediate meeting” request had been denied, and there is a visit ban on Ocalan by the government.
- A Turkish court in Hakkari sentenced a veteran female Kurdish politician, Leyla Guven, to five years in prison for “spreading propaganda for a terrorist organization” for praising Ocalan’s calls for peace during a speech she delivered in February of 2020. Guven participated in the court hearing from prison as she has been sentenced to 22 years, six months in the past, for similar charges. Meanwhile, the Turkish government continued cracking down on HDP members, Kurdish activists, and Turkish protesters dissenting against the dramatic Turkish lira value. The Turkish police arrested six HDP members in Istanbul on Friday and 17 people in Adana for social media posts criticizing the government. In Batman, the Turkish authorities raided the home of a journalist and terrorized her family by using slurs against children and threatening the family with guns. In Ankara, 17 people were arrested for protesting the economic issues facing the country.