.jpg)
KT News:
Salih Muslim
YPG/YPJ forces continue to tenaciously resist ISIS attacks within the city of Kobanê while, across the Turkish border, the authorities have responded to huge Kurd protests with bullets, gas, mass arrests and curfews. Salih Mulsim, co-chair of the PYD (Democratic Union Party) said yesterday that the Kobanê Kurds “fight with Kalashnikovs against tanks and missiles” and he accused Turkey of reneging on a promise to open a safe corridor to enable more support to be sent to these Kurd forces. In an interview with ANF, Muslim gave an account of his recent meeting with Turkish officials. “They told us that they don’t want Kobanê to fall”, he said.
“’We will open a corridor to help you. We have to be in unity against the ISIS’ they said. We found it positive. Now they are taking time. We insist that they keep their promises. They told us ‘not to explain the content of the meeting to the press’ but they themselves are attacking us”.
While welcoming the belated intensification of air strikes by the US-led coalition on ISIS forces in Kobanê, Muslim said the key demand of Syrian Kurds is for the heavy weapons and ammunition they need to defeat ISIS on the ground.
“We have been saying from the very beginning that we do not demand that they ‘come here and fight for us’”, said Muslim. “We just ask them to open the border gates, and sell us the anti-tank and missiles we need and we will pay for. They aren’t doing that even”.
Muslim welcomed a promise of support from the French Minister of Foreign Affairs and he called for more support from South Kurdistan.
“I also criticize the silence of South Kurdistan”, he said. “Some TV channels in the south say that ‘this war is between the PYD and the ISIS’. This is not true. People from parties other than us were also beheaded and massacred. They were not members or supporters of the PYD, they were killed because they were Kurds. They shouldn’t feel comforted today as South Kurdistan is also among the targets of the ISIS. Once they find the opportunity, they will attack Hewler as well because according to them Kurds are nonbelievers and they have to be annihilated. The government of South Kurdistan and the people must be aware of this fact and stand with Kobanê”.
