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A weekly brief of events occurred in the Kurdistan regions of Iran, Iraq, Syria, and Turkey.
Iran
- The Iranian regime deployed thousands of security forces throughout Iran’s Kurdish region on September 16, the first anniversary of Zhina Mahsa Amini’s death. Many of the forces were concentrated in Amini’s hometown of Saqqez. Iranian authorities also detained Amini’s father for a few hours before placing the entire Amini family under house arrest. At the same time, dozens of Kurdish men and women, including activists and protest organizers, were arrested. Even so, shops and businesses in 18 Kurdish cities and towns heeded the call of Iranian Kurdish opposition parties and launched a general strike on September 16. Outside of Iranian Kurdistan, protests were held in Fars and Zahedan amid reports two members of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) had died. Furthermore, despite a deal that saw the U.S. unfreeze approximately six billion dollars in Iranian assets in exchange for five American detainees, the U.S. imposed a new round of sanctions on Iranian officials, including several IRGC officers. “The United States has joined countries around the world in supporting the Iranian people in their pursuit of justice, accountability, and respect for their human rights, during the protests and throughout the last year,” said U.S. Secretary of State Tony Blinken during a televised speech.
- Iraqi Minister of Foreign Affairs Fuad Hussein visited Tehran to discuss the “disarmament” and “relocation” of Iranian opposition parties in Iraqi Kurdistan last Tuesday. “The necessary measures were taken to remove these groups from the border areas, and they were housed in remote camps deep in Iraq and Kurdistan,” said Hussein during a press conference with his Iranian counterpart. Iran’s September 19 deadline for disarming and relocating Iranian Kurdish opposition parties forced Hussein to travel to Iran and attempt to stop expected Iranian attacks on Iraqi territory. However, Hussein criticized Iran for “threats by bombs and launching a military campaign while Iran and Iraq enjoy an excellent relationship.” The Voice of America reported the Iranian regime also requested the deportation of 22 Kurdish opposition figures in Iraq.
Iraq
- On Monday, a senior member of the Europe-based Kurdistan National Congress (KNK) named Denîz Hêvî was assassinated in Erbil. The assassin shot Hêvî five times in his home in a in an operation suspected to be Turkish-related. Simultaneously, a Turkish drone killed three members of the Counter Terrorism Group (CTG) and wounded three others near Arbat Airport in Sulaymaniyah Governorate. The attack marks the first time Turkey directly targeted Kurdish security forces in Iraq. In April, a Turkish drone attempted to strike Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) General Commander Mazloum Abdi at Sulaymaniyah Airport while he was accompanied by U.S. forces and CTG members. In a separate incident, a Turkish drone killed three members of the Sinjar Resistance Units (YBS) while they were traveling in a vehicle on Mount Sinjar on Sunday.
- A senior delegation led by Prime Minister of Kurdistan Region Masrour Barzani and Deputy Prime Minister Qubad Talabani held several meetings with Iraqi officials in Baghdad to discuss the Kurdistan Regional Government’s (KRG) share of the federal budget. After the meeting, Iraq’s Council of Ministers voted to send 700 billion Iraqi dinars to Iraqi Kurdistan for three months as a loan to cover the salaries of public employees. Barzani expressed hope the agreement would become a “basis for resolving all issues between the KRG and the federal government.” It is unclear how Iraq will use the 400,000 barrels of oil per day that the Iraqi budget bill stipulates the KRG hand over in exchange for its share of the federal budget. Meanwhile, oil exports from Iraqi Kurdistan remain halted because Baghdad and Ankara have yet to reach an agreement on their resumption through the Ceyhan pipeline.
Syria
- Turkey and Saudi Arabia continued building what will be the second-largest settlement compound in Turkish-occupied Afrin. Turkey has been attempting to alter the demography of northern Syria by committing ethnic cleansing against its Kurdish residents and replacing them with forcibly repatriated Syrian Arabs. Turkey’s policy has reduced the percentage of Kurds in Afrin and its surrounding areas from 95 percent to approximately 66 percent. Many of the returned Syrian refugees are being housed in over 100 settlement complexes built by Turkey in conjunction with humanitarian organizations and financed with aid from Gulf states like Kuwait.
- The SDF announced it captured a major ISIS (Da’esh) financier named Yahya Ahmed al Hajji during its campaign to eliminate Da’esh cells in Deir Ez Zor Governorate known as “Operation Security Reinforcement.” Al Hajji, also known as Abu Bara’a Al-Hasan, was the financial officer for Da’esh’s “Levant State” and previously served as the chief assistant of Mamoun as Shami, head of Da’esh’s financial authority in Raqqa and Deir Ez Zor during the “Caliphate era.” Al Hajji continued to fund terror cells, coordinate attacks, and recruit other financiers until the SDF raided his hideout in al-Busyra on September 3.
- Turkey appointed a single governor to oversee Afrin in an effort to impose a more orderly and unified model of administration on the region. In addition, Turkey hopes installing a single governor will facilitate stronger cooperation between Ankara and Afrin’s Syrian National Army (SNA)-affiliated councils. Turkey’s policy is likely to strengthen Ankara’s ability to direct its Turkification policies in northern Syria and does not address the region’s rampant corruption, human rights abuses, and security issues.
- A Turkish drone strike killed two members of the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria’s (AANES) internal security force (Asayesh) in Qamishli on Sunday. Eight other Asayesh personnel were wounded in the strike, and some remain in critical condition. Sunday’s attack is the latest in a campaign that has terrorized northeastern Syria’s citizens, resulting in the death of 114 civilians since 2020.
Turkey
- The Ankara 22nd High Criminal Court oversaw the 31st session of the Kobani criminal trial at Sincan Prison. The session featured politicians Ahmet Türk and Gülser Yıldırım defending their roles in the Turkey-Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) peace process. The Turkish government is prosecuting 108 individuals, including former co-chairs of the pro-Kurdish People’s Democratic Party (HDP) Figen Yüksekdağ and Selahattin Demirtaş, former co-chairperson of the Democratic Regions Party (DBP) Sebahat Tuncel, honorary chairperson of the HDP Ertuğrul Kürkçü, and members of the HDP Central Executive Committee. The Turkish government claims the HDP caused the deaths of 37 people and disrupted national unity by inciting Turkey’s “Kobane protests” in 2014. Turkish authorities also claim the HDP was acting under orders of the PKK in soliciting Turkish aid for the People’s Protection Units (YPG).
- Turkey’s Green Left Party, a pro-Kurdish party that serves as the HDP’s sister party, expressed support for Kurdish MP Sezgin Tanrikulu, who is currently under investigation for televised statements that criticized the Turkish Armed Forces (TAF) and asserted the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) concluded the TAF committed atrocities against Turkey’s Kurdish population. Tanrikulu’s party, the Peoples Republican Party (CHP), has distanced itself from him (though some remain supportive), and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has declared that Tanrikulu retains close ties with the PKK and will be punished for his statements.