A group of 49 MEPs wrote to the President of the Commission, Ursula Von Der Leyen, and to the Vice President of the Commission/High Representative Josep Borrell to “raise our serious concern about the latest attacks by Iran and Turkey against Kurdish areas in Syria and Iraq and the military crackdown of Iran on its Kurdish regions.”
The letter says: “We cannot let Erdogan instrumentalize yet another tragic event, and allow him to use the Istanbul blast as an excuse to resume brutal attacks on Kurdish areas. This is indeed not the first campaign of aggression against the Kurdish people and it is unlikely to be the last if we do not take action.
In recent years, Turkey has launched many cross-border military operations with the aim of defeating Kurdish- led forces the Turkish government considers “terrorist” organizations.
Turkey has conducted three incursions so far into northern Syria against the YPG/YPJ militia and escalated its drone strikes in Syria in recent months, killing a number of key SDF officials. Ankara has also regularly carried out air strikes in northern Iraq since April 17 and has sent commandos to support its offensives against the PKK. In the Kurdistan Region of Iraq (KRI), there have been numerous allegations of use of chemical weapons by the Turkish forces, on which a special Iraqi Parliament Committee is currently investigating.”
The MEPs also said that “in the meanwhile, at home, Erdogan continues its crackdown on Kurdish political movements such as the pro-Kurdish Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP), with prison sentences issued for many HDP politicians and activists, including former co-chairs Selahattin Demirtaş and Figen Yüksekdağ, and more recently a legal procedure that aims to close the party down.”
In their letter the MEPs said: “As a champion of universal human rights, fundamental freedoms and the rule-based international order, the European Union must raise its voice against such deadly attacks that are in clear violation of international and humanitarian law.
Moreover, in Rojava and in Bashur, Kurds, Arabs, Assyrians and Armenians, have created in a period of wartime a democratic alternative that led to peace. It is of utmost importance to defend their achievements, also because with tens of thousands of jihadists detained in north-eastern Syria, the end of this experience could pave the way for a new attempt at a caliphate like Isis, leading back to the situation of 2014.
We are therefore writing to you, in our capacity of Members of the European Parliament, to impress upon you the urgent need to take action with regard to Iran and Turkey cross-border attacks against the Kurdish people and prevent another humanitarian catastrophe.”
The MEPs called on the European Union to “speak on behalf of the European Union and to coordinate a strong a persistent diplomatic action with
Member states, also within the United Nations and NATO, to clearly and publicly condemn Turkey and Iran attacks in Syria and Iraq and to urge the Turkish and Iranian authorities to immediately halt any cross- border military operation;
- to appeal the United Nations, the International Anti-EI Coalition, and our NATO partners to act to ensure that our Turkish ally behaves consistently with its international commitments and in accordance with International Law;
- to vehemently reject the politically motivated attempts to ban the HDP and urge the Turkish authorities to fulfil their International legal obligations and implement the decisions of the Council of Europe and European Court of Human Rights condemning the prosecution of HDP mayors and politicians and demanding their release;
- to urge the Iranian authorities to immediately halt the use of lethal force against unarmed protesters and remind them that failure to halt the continued violations will result in intense and coordinated international diplomatic repercussions;
- to call for an United Nations investigation on the allegations concerning the use of chemical weapons by Turkish forces in Iraqi Kurdistan;
- to use all leverage and tools at our disposal to foster a climate of peace and dialogue in the region, making sure that the voices of Kurdish people are heard, their aspirations are responded to and they are granted the opportunity to decide their own future, and to clarify what initiatives the Commission intends to take in this regard.”
The signatories are as follows:
Fabio Massimo CASTALDO, Member of the European Parliament (N.I.)
Eva KAILI, Vice-President of the European Parliament (S&D)
Dimitrios PAPADIMOULIS, Vice-President of the European Parliament (The Left / GUE)
Tiziana BEGHIN, Member of the European Parliament (N.I.)
Emmanouil FRAGKOS, Member of the European Parliament (ECR)
Andreas SCHIEDER, Member of the European Parliament (S&D)
Carles PUIGDEMONT, Member of the European Parliament (N.I.)
Clara PONSATÍ, Member of the European Parliament (N.I.)
Antoni COMÍN, Member of the European Parliament (N.I.)
Ignazio CORRAO, Member of the European Parliament (GREENS/EFA)
Nikolaj VILLUMSEN, Member of the European Parliament (The Left / GUE)
Marisa MATIAS, Member of the European Parliament (The Left / GUE)
Nicola PEDICINI, Member of the European Parliament (GREENS/EFA)
Mario FURORE, Member of the European Parliament (N.I.)
Chris MACMANUS, Member of the European Parliament (The Left / GUE)
Salima YENBOU, Member of the European Parliament (RENEW Europe)
Martin BUSCHMANN, Member of the European Parliament (N.I.)
Evin INCIR, Member of the European Parliament (S&D)
Martin SONNEBORN, Member of the European Parliament (N.I.)
Costas MAVRIDES, Member of the European Parliament (S&D)
José GUSMÃO, Member of the European Parliament (The Left / GUE)
Joachim KUHS, Member of the European Parliament (ID)
Theresa MUIGG, Member of the European Parliament (S&D)
Anne-Sophie PELLETIER, Member of the European Parliament (The Left / GUE)
Massimiliano SMERIGLIO, Member of the European Parliament (S&D)
Anna-Misel ASIMAKOPOULOU, Member of the European Parliament (EPP)
François ALFONSI, Member of the European Parliament (GREENS/EFA)
Benoît BITEAU, Member of the European Parliament (GREENS/EFA)
Damien CARÊME, Member of the European Parliament (GREENS/EFA)
David CORMAND, Member of the European Parliament (GREENS/EFA)
Gwendoline DELBOS-CORFIELD, Member of the European Parliament (GREENS/EFA)
Karima DELLI, Member of the European Parliament (GREENS/EFA)
Claude GRUFFAT, Member of the European Parliament (GREENS/EFA)
Yannick JADOT, Member of the European Parliament (GREENS/EFA)
Michèle RIVASI, Member of the European Parliament (GREENS/EFA)
Dino GIARRUSSO, Member of the European Parliament (N.I.)
Sabrina PIGNEDOLI, Member of the European Parliament (N.I.)
Caroline ROOSE , Member of the European Parliament (GREENS/EFA)
Mounir SATOURI, Member of the European Parliament (GREENS/EFA)
Marie TOUSSAINT, Member of the European Parliament (GREENS/EFA)
Jordi SOLÉ, Member of the European Parliament (GREENS/EFA)
Maria Angela DANZÌ, Member of the European Parliament (N.I.)
Alviina ALAMETSÄ, Member of the European Parliament (GREENS/EFA)
Diana RIBA I GINER, Member of the European Parliament (GREENS/EFA)
Matjaz NEMEC, Member of the European Parliament (S&D)
Brando BENIFEI, Member of the European Parliament (S&D)
Izaskun BILBAO BARANDICA, Member of the European Parliament (RENEW Europe)
Laura FERRARA, Member of the European Parliament (N.I.)
Ivan DAVID, Member of the European Parliament (ID)
Javier NART, Member of the European Parliament (RENEW Europe)
More articles on the topic: