Berlin. On the evening of 23 September, in Wola Krobowska, some fifty kilometres south of Warsaw, a Starlink ground station was set alight. The facility connects the satellites to the ground network and is also used for communications with Ukraine. Poland has stated that the operation was carried out on Russia’s orders. On 12 October, two Turkish nationals suspected of the attack – Ümit E., aged 38, and Müslüm T., aged 35 – were arrested in Nürtingen, Germany. Intelligence and security sources from several countries, as reported in two separate investigations by Der Spiegel and Die Welt, reveal that one line of inquiry suggests the alleged saboteurs may be linked to the Turkish-Kurdish criminal gang known as the Daltons.

On the evening of 9 October, in Bulgaria, eight Starlink antennas at the Plana Teleport, south of Sofia, were set alight. In this case too, the two suspects are from Germany: two 19-year-olds with German citizenship and foreign origins, who were arrested on 23 October in Duisburg under a European arrest warrant.

On 18 October, Lithuania foiled a similar attempt against a Starlink facility, and the authorities in Vilnius have linked it to the other two cases.

Tomasz Siemoniak, Poland’s Minister for the Coordination of Special Services, has emphasised that Russian intelligence is increasingly turning to individuals from the criminal underworld. Moscow’s secret services use both professional agents and ‘disposable’ agents – so-called ‘low-level agents’ – in Europe. Criminal groups can, however, be exploited as intermediaries: willing to take risks and highly skilled in operational matters, they are already part of a network that knows how to evade the authorities. As early as May, the German Ministry of the Interior noted that, for Moscow, organised crime is particularly useful for acts of sabotage and assassinations.

The Daltons are a gang that broke away from Baris Boyun’s organisation in 2024: the gang is gaining prominence not only in Turkey, but also in Europe and on the streets of Germany. In Berlin, the youngest and most ruthless members are using violence to establish a foothold in extortion and arms trafficking. The alleged leader of the Daltons is Beratcan Gökdemir, born in 1997: arrested in Russia in 2024, he has never been extradited to Turkey and his current whereabouts are unclear. According to security sources cited by Spiegel and Welt, Gökdemir is said to have become a protégé of Moscow, under the protection of the Russian security services. Speaking to ARD, a ‘spokesperson’ for the gang claimed in March that Gökdemir was living in a safe house provided by the Russian government. ARD itself has found videos of fighters fighting on Russia’s side in Ukraine sending birthday wishes to Gökdemir.

The gang’s history also extends to Italy: the Turkish-Kurdish Baris Boyun, born in 1984, was arrested in 2024 in Bagnaia as part of an anti-terrorism investigation by the Milan Public Prosecutor’s Office, and is currently being held under the 41-bis regime in L’Aquila. Boyun is considered the leader of the network that bears his name, of which the Daltons were previously an armed wing. The Public Prosecutor’s Office, which also accuses him of being the instigator of a murder committed in Berlin in March 2024, classifies the group as terrorist in nature.

The theory that is beginning to emerge is that the Daltons, too, have become involved in what Europol terms ‘violence-as-a-service’, in which criminal groups act as subcontractors of violence, often through young operatives paid on a per-job basis. Their clients may include other criminal organisations or even intelligence services. One of the best-known cases in this regard is the Foxtrot network, based in Sweden and led by Rawa Majid, nicknamed the ‘Kurdish Fox’. Iranian intelligence services are said to have used Foxtrot’s services on several occasions, whilst Majid is currently believed to be in hiding in Iran. Foxtrot is believed to be behind operations such as the attack on the Israeli embassy in Stockholm in January 2024, for which the US Treasury imposed sanctions on the network and Majid himself in 2025. Very often, these groups use minors, sometimes those below the age of criminal responsibility. Europol has set up a dedicated task force, called Grimm and led by Sweden. Die Welt reports that the Daltons are well known at Europol headquarters. Whether, and to what extent, this and other criminal gangs might also play a role in Russia’s irregular warfare remains to be seen, but the attention of various intelligence services across Europe appears to be focused in this direction.

The Kurdish film Harsh Earth and Distant Sky, directed by Hawraz Mohammed, has been selected for the 45th Cambridge International Film Festival in the United Kingdom. The festival will host the film’s first international screenings following its release in cinemas in the Kurdistan Region.
Filmed mainly in the borderlands of Kurdistan, the 102-minute drama explores guilt, memory and the lasting psychological effects of war. It follows Haroon, a Kurdish revolutionary struggling with the emotional burdens of his past as he searches for peace and a way to reconcile with what he has experienced.
Haroon’s journey leads him first to Yarsani religious music and later to Mariam, a Kurdish woman living in a remote village where the borders of Iraq, Iran and Turkey meet. Mariam is known for the traditional Kurdish practice of body tattooing, which forms part of the film’s cultural setting.
Mohammed said the film addresses the moral and psychological consequences of war and internal conflict, subjects he believes are rarely discussed openly in Kurdish society. Rather than portraying war through violence and spectacle, the film focuses on what remains after conflict: grief, guilt and wounds that affect individuals, families, communities and the land itself.
The director said the border region carries particular meaning because, although political boundaries have divided Kurdistan, people from different parts of the region continue to meet and share cultural traditions.
“I wanted to tell this story because, after wars and internal conflicts, people carry guilt and grief, and I also wanted to raise the question of whether forgiveness can open a way out of that situation,” Mohammed said.
He explained that the film uses the landscape, nature, Yarsani music and the ancient Kurdish tradition of tattooing to explore memory, healing and reconciliation.
The director described the Cambridge selection as an important step in the film’s international journey. He said the festival offers an opportunity for British audiences, critics and reviewers to engage with Kurdish cinema and the experiences it portrays.
Produced in the Kurdistan Region, the film is in Kurdish and brings together actors and crew members from the four main parts of Kurdistan. Hawraz Mohammed and Mansour Tayfouri wrote the screenplay, while Salem Salavati handled cinematography.
The main roles are played by Mariam Boubani, Bakhtiar Panjeei, Dimen Zandi and Ezhdar Sazgar. The film is scheduled to be screened twice during the festival.
Through its exploration of war’s aftermath and the possibility of forgiveness, Harsh Earth and Distant Sky brings Kurdish history, culture and human experiences to an international audience.

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Darden Copeland, a Democratic congressional candidate in Tennessee, has called for stronger US-Kurdish ties and a return to diplomacy, saying Congress must reclaim its role in shaping foreign policy amid growing concerns over Washington's approach to the Middle East.

In an interview with Rudaw's Diyar Kurda on Monday, Copeland said he wanted to see the war in Iran end responsibly and urged Washington to adopt a more consistent approach to its international partnerships, including with the Kurdistan Region.

“We need to return to diplomacy,” Copeland said, criticizing what he described as the concentration of foreign policy decisions in the hands of President Donald Trump.

The comments come as the US transitions toward a new phase in its relationship with Iraq and the Kurdistan Region following the withdrawal of US-led coalition forces, raising questions about Washington's future security cooperation with Erbil and its commitment to regional stability. 

‘A little more stability’

Asked how he would help reassure Kurdish allies following the US military withdrawal from Iraq and the Kurdistan Region, Copeland said Washington should prioritize diplomacy, cooperation and long-term partnerships rather than continued military confrontation.

“We're letting one man sort of dictate the foreign policy from the United States. And I think that Congress needs to step in and exert that authority back,” he said, emphasizing a return to “a system of diplomacy and goodwill and nation building and not simply sort of continue to be at war.”

Copeland expressed concern about what he described as Congress's reluctance to exercise its authority over foreign policy, arguing that lawmakers should play a greater role in decisions involving military action and international alliances.

“The brainpower of the US Congress, we send our best and brightest to the Senate and the House, and for them not to take a position on these things is troubling to me,” he said.

Under Article I of the US Constitution, Congress has the power to declare war, while the president serves as commander in chief of the armed forces. The division of war powers between Congress and the executive branch has long been debated.

A Democratic majority in the House of Representatives could also increase the security of the Trump administration's foreign policy, particularly its decision to enter the war in Iran.

Gregory Aftandilian, a professor at American University in Washington told Rudaw that “If the Democrats win the House of Representatives, which is very likely, there's going to be more scrutiny of the Trump administration's foreign policy, particularly why he got into the Iran war.”

Aftandilian said Democrats could use their subpoena power to compel administration officials to testify before Congress and use their authority over government spending to challenge further funding for the war. 

“Congress has the right of appropriations, in other words, allocating money for foreign policy.”

However, Aftandilin stated that control of the Senate remained uncertain and mentioned that the State Department would remain under Trump`s executive branch. 

Affordability, accountability

Copeland said the cost of living was among the main concerns he heard from voters across Middle Tennessee, including Kurdish Americans living in Nashville and Clarksville.

“The issues are no different than what the rest of Middle Tennessee is facing. It's affordability. It's the loss of the American dream,” he said.

He cited housing, health care, gasoline and grocery costs, as well as concerns about access to basic services, arguing that rising expenses were making it harder for families to achieve financial security.

Copeland also criticized what he described as corruption in Washington and the distribution of tax benefits, saying ordinary Americans were struggling while wealthy people received tax breaks.

“I think people have sort of had enough,” he said.

Copeland, who said he had lived in the Nashville area for 18 years, described aspirations to act as a “consensus builder and a bridge builder, not just for the Kurds here in the community, but the entire region of Middle Tennessee,” he said.

Congressional control

Copeland also cautioned against assuming that Democrats would control either chamber of Congress after the November midterm elections, saying the outcome would depend on voters.

“We don't know who's going to have control until November the 3rd,” he said. “The only poll that matters right now is the poll.”

He argued that a stronger congressional role could bring greater stability to US foreign policy and reduce abrupt changes in Washington's approach to international conflicts.

“The world is clamoring for a little bit more stability coming out of the United States,” Copeland said.

He added that Washington should focus on de-escalation and maintaining alliances while preserving its military strength.

“We can't rely on the whims of one individual up there in the White House,” he said, arguing that congressional oversight was essential to restoring the system of checks and balances established by the US Constitution.

The bereaved family of a Kurdish man holding Turkish nationality who died in custody at a Tokyo police station has sued the Tokyo Metropolitan Government and the clinic where the police station’s contract doctor works.

In the suit filed with the Tokyo District Court on Tuesday, the family is demanding ¥57 million ($361,000) in damages and other relief.

According to the complaint, the deceased was Murat Cicek, who died of peritonitis at age 48 on the morning of July 2 while in detention at the Metropolitan Police Department’s Takao station in Hachioji.

Murat was detained there after being arrested on suspicion of violating the immigration control and refugee recognition law by failing to carry his passport when he had a property damage accident in Hachioji on June 25.

The plaintiff side said the doctor failed to perform appropriate examinations and overlooked a hole in Murat’s bowel, although he began vomiting and experiencing stomach pain four days after his arrest.

The family also said the Takao police station left Murat untreated, even after his body temperature fell below 35 degrees Celsius, and failed to take him to a medical institution despite the doctor’s instructions.

The case “reflects a profound lack of human rights awareness within the police organization,” the family’s attorney, Hajime Kanbara, told a news conference. “We’ll pursue accountability in the suit.”

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - More than 4,000 historical manuscripts at Sulaimani's Awqaf Library have been cataloged, with around 400 digitized, as the first phase of a joint project to preserve the collection and make it accessible to researchers worldwide has been completed.

Announced at a ceremony in Sulaimani on Tuesday, the first phase concluded after more than a year of work by the Kurdistan Center for Art and Culture (KCAC), the University of Exeter and the Kurdistan Regional Government's (KRG) Ministry of Endowment and Religious Affairs, with support from the British Library. 

The collection includes manuscripts dating back as far as 800 years, covering religious studies, astronomy, literature and other fields. Preserving the documents and making them accessible could help researchers study centuries of Kurdish and regional intellectual history.

“One of the manuscripts that is a source of pride in the Sulaimani Awqaf Library is the manuscript of al-Zamakhshari's Al-Kashshaf [book],” Sabah Barzinji, a professor and researcher, told Rudaw's Nizar Jaza at the ceremony, referring to Abu al-Qasim Mahmud ibn Umar al-Zamakhshari - a medieval Muslim scholar of Iranian descent. 

According to Barzinji, the work dates to the eighth century AH (the Islamic lunar calendar, corresponding to the 14th century CE) and consists of four large volumes. It includes a teaching authorization documenting its owner's study of the text under a scholar’s supervision.

The library holds rare works in several languages, including Kurdish, Persian, Arabic and Turkish, according to Farangis Ghaderi, head of the Kurdish Studies Center at the University of Exeter.

Fatih Reber, the KCAC's director of communications, said that all 4,000 manuscripts have been cataloged, while around 400 have been scanned, adding that in the next phase “all the manuscripts will be scanned, meaning anyone anywhere in the world will be able to view and look at them. Another part of it is better preservation."

Kawsar Muhammad, director of the Awqaf Library, said the catalog had transformed the library to a better state. 

“From now on, we can take further steps to be able to clean up the manuscripts and do more serious work on them so that they are more available to researchers and universities," she said. 

The collection dates back to the libraries of the Baban principality during the Ottoman era. The manuscripts were later transferred to Sulaimani's Grand Mosque before being housed at the Awqaf Library.

The city of Zergan witnessed a march attended by students, members of the Zergan Youth Organization and local residents, calling for the constitutional recognition of Kurdish as an official language in Syria. The demands aim to guarantee the linguistic and cultural rights of the Kurdish people and promote the principles of diversity and pluralism in the country.

During the march, a statement was read in Kurdish by student Jihan Nema and Riad Abdel Aziz, a member of the Democratic Union Party (PYD) Youth Organization.

The statement included, “The Kurdish language is an inherent right, and enshrining it in the Constitution is a step toward a democratic and pluralistic Syria. Its constitutional recognition is grounded in the principles of human rights, justice and equality, as well as peoples’ right to preserve their languages, cultures and identities.”

It added that Kurdish, as an indigenous language deeply rooted in Syria’s history and culture, deserves explicit constitutional recognition to ensure its protection, development and use across various fields. 

He noted that the recognition of Kurdish as a national language under Decree No. 13 of 2026 represents an important step toward acknowledging the cultural and linguistic rights of the Kurdish people. He stressed the need to build on this step by enshrining the status of Kurdish in Syria’s permanent Constitution and safeguarding its rights through clear and binding constitutional provisions.

The statement called for enshrining Kurdish in the Constitution and recognizing it as an official language in Syria alongside Arabic, reflecting the country’s ethnic and cultural diversity. It also called for guaranteeing the right of Kurdish citizens to receive education in their mother tongue and including Kurdish in school curricula, as well as ensuring their right to use the language in public institutions and local administrations.

The statement further stressed the need to protect Kurdish literary, cultural and artistic heritage, establish constitutional and legal safeguards against linguistic and cultural discrimination, and involve representatives of the various national, cultural, and linguistic components in drafting the permanent Syrian Constitution.

The statement stressed that recognizing the Kurdish language does not diminish the status of Arabic. Rather, it is a national and rights-based entitlement that strengthens trust among the people of the same country and helps consolidate the foundations of peaceful coexistence based on equality and mutual respect.

The statement concluded by emphasizing that the future Syria should be a homeland for all its people, where languages and cultures are preserved, identities respected, and rights protected on the basis of equal citizenship, free from exclusion and marginalization. It added that recognizing Kurdish in Syria’s permanent Constitution and guaranteeing the right of Kurdish people to learn, use and develop their language constitute a fundamental step toward building a democratic and pluralistic Syria, united in its territory, enriched by its diversity, and fair to all its communities.

ANHA

The withdrawal in October of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) from Turkiye and border areas of the Kurdistan Regional Government has kickstarted a debate over Turkish bases in KRG. With the “armed threat” that Ankara has long cited as justification for its presence seemingly receding, the rationale will likely need reformulating as Turkiye's military engagement in Iraq comes under ever greater scrutiny.

Hundreds of Iraqi women have sought refuge in Hewlêr/Erbil, fleeing domestic violence, child marriage, and family control amid concerns over Iraq’s amended Personal Status Law and the Ja’fari code.

"The PKK’s regional integration in Syria and Iraq, alongside its peace process with Turkey, points to a two-layered arrangement. At the national level, its affiliated groups are giving up part of their separate organisational identities by integrating into the states in which they operate. In return, they gain recognition and potentially substantial influence in their local areas, creating a form of indirect decentralisation. At the regional level, they remain part of a single network that recognises the imprisoned PKK founder Abdullah Ocalan as its leader. In some ways this arrangement has no precedent in the century since the partition of the Ottoman Empire. Kurdish rebellions and movements in these countries have since had their own local leadership and organisational structures. The PKK’s network is following a different model, in which its affiliates give up some of their autonomy through integration while potentially becoming legally recognised entities within their respective states."

After screening her ISIS-war documentary "Pêşwaziya Mirinê", director Nesrîn Ebdî says she is making a documentary on an Anfal survivor and plans a major film on Rojava.

The state-appointed trustee running Colemêrg (Hakkari) municipality reports 32.41 million lira of tax and social-security debt, and says liens have been placed on all municipal vehicles and property.

The "No to Execution Tuesdays" campaign held its weekly hunger strike in 66 Iranian prisons and warned that executions in Iran are rising.

Kurdish farmers in Kirkuk say settled Arabs and a PMF brigade commander seized 43 donums of their land, ploughing up their barley and sowing wheat.

A Kurd Monitor report traces the salary crisis since Baghdad cut the Kurdistan Region's budget share in February 2014, and how many billions went to ministers' and MPs' pay

Students in Dêrik rallied again for Kurdish-language schooling. They reject a decision allowing only three Kurdish lessons a week and demand full mother-tongue education.

Kurdistan Region Interior Minister Rebar Ahmed says Baghdad integrated about 2,000 YBŞ fighters without consulting Erbil, breaching the 2020 Shingal Agreement, and warns it will not bring stability.

QAMISHLI, SYRIA—I recently returned to northern Syria for the first time since the fall of the Bashar al-Assad regime in December 2024. What I saw was markedly different from what I had witnessed during previous trips to the Kurdish region, which enjoyed de facto autonomy from 2012 until January 2026.

The changes are visible the moment you cross the border from Iraqi Kurdistan. Until August 2026, the Semalka border crossing was controlled by the Kurdish-led Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria, before its armed wing, the Syrian Democratic Forces, announced its dissolution. Established in 2013 as a humanitarian crossing during the Syrian conflict, Semalka was the only border point across the Middle East controlled by Kurdish forces on both sides of the frontier.

The picture becomes more nuanced as you travel west along the Syria-Turkey border, passing through Kurdish cities and towns all the way to Qamishli, the largest city in northeast Syria.

That is no longer the case on the Syrian side. Now officially known as the Semalka International Crossing, it is under the control of the central government in Damascus. Syrian flags have replaced those of the Autonomous Administration, and Kurdish symbols are nowhere to be seen. Official paperwork and stamps from Damascus have taken the place of those once used by the Kurdish authorities. Although these changes signal who is now in charge of northeast Syria, most of the government employees at the crossing are the same people who were on the now-defunct Kurdish administration’s payroll.

The picture becomes more nuanced as you travel west along the Syria-Turkey border, passing through Kurdish cities and towns all the way to Qamishli, the largest city in northeast Syria and one that Syrian Kurds regard as their capital. Qamishli is an exhausted city. Its crowded streets are riddled with potholes, far more than residents would care to see, and air pollution from diesel-powered electricity generators makes the air difficult to breathe. But these longstanding problems do not obscure the political dynamics that have emerged since the January 2026 clashes between Kurdish forces and Syrian government troops. The violence was followed by an agreement that ultimately led to the dissolution of the Syrian Democratic Forces and the Autonomous Administration.

Qamishli is now under Syrian government control. Its international airport is expected to reopen before the end of 2026, as is its border crossing with Nusaybin in Turkey. Signs bearing the symbols of the Syrian Arab Republic are visible on government buildings, evoking the Baath-era landscape. The main difference is that most signs are now bilingual, in Arabic and Kurdish.

A similar situation is emerging in Hasaka, the provincial capital of Hasaka governorate. With its significant Arab population, Hasaka is seeing growing tensions between Kurdish and Arab residents. These ethnic tensions will serve as a litmus test for whether the January 2026 agreement can deliver long-term stability in northeast Syria. In Hasaka, the Kurdish governor appointed by Damascus appears to wield little power; his Islamist, Damascus-aligned deputy seems to be the real power behind the scenes. It is figures like the latter, including some ethnic Kurds, who have risen to prominence since the integration process began in northeast Syria.

These differences between large and small cities in northeast Syria illustrate the complexity of the region’s evolving power dynamics.

In smaller cities such as Amuda and Dirbasiyeh, the political and security landscape has remained largely unchanged, aside from administrative changes. Local security forces and traffic police officers wear the same uniforms that they wore under the Autonomous Administration. Most government institutions and public schools retain their old signage. Kurdish flags and portraits of fighters killed during the conflict are displayed along streets and in public spaces.

These differences between large and small cities in northeast Syria illustrate the complexity of the region’s evolving power dynamics. Even as Damascus has succeeded in recentralizing power, inconsistencies in local governance in northeast Syria underscore the challenges of extending central government authority uniformly across a region that was ruled semi-autonomously for over a decade.

Beyond the confusion over who governs what and whether key decisions are made in Damascus or Qamishli, Syrian Kurds recognize that any understanding reached between Kurdish leaders and Damascus is a temporary arrangement that does little to address their longstanding demands. Everyone you speak with here emphasizes that, in a country governed by Islamists, constitutional guarantees may be the only way to safeguard Kurdish rights in the long term.

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region of Iraq – Syria’s Democratic Union Party (PYD) on Monday called on Syrian presidential advisor Mazloum Abdi to fulfill his “responsibilities” following an episode of violence against internally displaced Kurds returning to their homes, saying the attacks “contravene” the January integration agreement made with Damascus.

Earlier on Monday, footage showed a group of displaced Kurds from the town of Gire Spi (Tal Abyad) in northern Syria being attacked upon arriving in the city as they attempted to return to their homes.

Shortly after, the committee for displaced people from the town of Sari Kani condemned the attacks, noting that more than 100 Kurdish families were “trapped” inside the Gire Spi district directorate building, calling on authorities for their urgent intervention to protect and ensure their safety, read a statement from the committee.

Following the incident, local media reported that internal security forces were dispatched to the location to assist the families trapped there.

“We call upon Mr. Mazloum Abdi, the governor of Raqqa, and all relevant officials within the Syrian government to fulfill their legal and national responsibilities. We urge them to take the necessary measures to halt these violations, hold those responsible to account, and engage with the relevant parties to protect Kurdish families and ensure their security and rights,” the PYD said in a statement.

The PYD was the ruling party during the era of Kurdish-led autonomous rule in northeast Syria (Rojava) during the Syrian civil war, while Abdi served as chief of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), the autonomous administration's primary military force.

In January, Damascus and the now-dissolved SDF reached an agreement to integrate the Kurdish-led forces into the Syrian security apparatus on the heels of a Syrian military invasion of Rojava that brought about an end to autonomous rule.

A key point in the landmark agreement was the return of internally displaced persons (IDPs), including Kurdish civilians who were displaced in Turkish operations across Afrin, Sari Kani, and Gire Spi (Tal Abyad) between 2018 and 2019.

The violent incident “contravenes key provisions” of the January agreement regarding the safe and dignified return of refugees, the PYD added.

The PYD further called for the establishment of a “special committee,” tasked with ensuring a safe and dignified return of the IDPs, while expressing “full solidarity” with those affected and reaffirming PYD’s commitment “to uphold their right.”

It also called for those responsible for the violations to be held accountable.

“Gire Spi is not a land without owners; its indigenous inhabitants must not be subjected to imposed violations, nor should they be deprived of their legitimate rights to their land, property, and identity.”

Earlier in August, the committee for displaced people from the town of Sari Kani announced that it had temporarily suspended further return convoys until guarantees are provided for the safe return of displaced families, following attacks on returnees.

The developments followed the arrival of a convoy carrying more than 400 families from an IDP camp in Hasaka to Sari Kani (Ras al-Ayn). Footage circulating online appeared to show returnees being attacked by armed men.

In March, Syrian interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa agreed to form an official committee tasked with ensuring the return of IDPs from Afrin and Sari Kani to their areas of origin.

Women in Hasakah strongly denounced acts of vandalism targeting photographs of martyr female fighters and Kurdish symbols in the region, as well as attacks on families returning to their homes in Girê Spî. They described these acts as a systematic attempt to undermine social peace, break women’s will, and fuel discord among the different components of society.

An attempt to provoke and suppress women

In this context, Hasakah resident Jumana Ahmad said the vandalism represented a deliberate attempt to obstruct social peace and the process of community integration in the region.

She noted that targeting photographs of martyr female fighters and attacking displaced residents of Girê Spî were clear attempts to provoke and suppress women on all fronts, with the aim of returning them to the conditions that prevailed before the revolution.

Jumana called for reason and wisdom to prevail to nip discord in the bud and prevent it from spreading among the region’s peoples.

Attacks driven by fear

For her part, Hasakah resident Hadiya Mohammed firmly rejected any desecration of photographs of martyr female fighters, citing their sacred significance and esteemed place in society.

She said these attacks stemmed primarily from fear of the strength of Kurdish women, who have proven their capabilities on the ground and in battle. She stressed that attempts to break their will would instead become an additional source of strength, driving them forward.

Acts devoid of humanity

Meanwhile, Hasakah resident Sultana Saeed, speaking on behalf of the city’s women, condemned attacks on Kurdish symbols, describing such acts as devoid of human values.

She added that the security and stability the region enjoys today are the result of the sacrifices made by the martyrs. She stressed that women are being targeted because those behind the acts of vandalism fear their active role in achieving justice, equality, and humanity.

A-H

ANHA

رووداو دیجیتاڵ

دوای ئەوەی دەیان خێزانی ئاوارەی کورد لە کاتی گەڕانەوەیان بۆ زێدی خۆیان لە گرێ سپی رووبەڕووی هێرش و پەلاماردان بوونەوە و لەنێو باڵەخانەیەکی حکومیدا گەمارۆ دران، بەڕێوەبەری هەرێمی کۆبانی بە تۆڕی میدیایی رووداوی راگەیاند کە بۆ چارەسەرکردنی کێشەکە لەگەڵ لایەنە پەیوەندیدارەکان لەسەر هێڵن.

ئیبراهیم موسلیم، بەڕێوەبەری هەرێمی کۆبانی، لە لێدوانێکی تایبەتدا بە تۆڕی میدیایی رووداوی گوتی: "لەگەڵ بەڕێوەبەرایەتیی گرێ سپی لەسەر هێڵین و لێکۆڵینەوە لەو رووداوانە دەکەین کە لە گرێ سپی روویانداوە."

بەڕێوەبەری هەرێمی کۆبانی جەختی لەوە کردەوە کە بەدواداچوون بۆ دۆخی ئاوارە گەڕاوەکان دەکەن و گوتی: "لە پەیوەندیداین لەبارەی ئەو هێرشەی کراوەتە سەر کوردان لە گرێ سپی. بۆ چارەسەرکردنی کێشەکە و باسکردنی هۆکارەکانی روودانی ئەم کارە، هاوئاهەنگی لەگەڵ بەڕێوەبەرایەتیی ناوچەی گرێ سپی دەکەین."

رۆژی دووشەممە، 26ی تشرینی یەکەمی 2026، دەیان خێزانی ئاوارەی کورد لەسەر بانگهێشتی بەڕێوەبەرایەتیی گرێ سپی گەڕانەوە شارەکە، ئەوەش بە مەبەستی پێشکێشکردنی بەڵگەنامە فەرمییەکانی خاوەندارێتیی زەوی و خانووەکانیان. بەڵام لە کاتی گەیشتنیان لەلایەن ژمارەیەک نیشتەجێبووی ناوچەکەوە هێرشیان کرایە سەر و زیان بە ئۆتۆمبێلەکانیان گەیێنرا.

لەم بارەیەوە، (لیژنەی ئاوارەکانی گرێ سپی) لە راگەیێندراوێکی بەپەلەدا سەرکۆنەی ئەو هێرشانەی کرد کە کرانە سەر هاونیشتمانییە سڤیلە کوردەکان. لیژنەکە باسی لەوە کرد، زیاتر لە 100 خێزانی کورد کە ژن و منداڵیان تێدایە، لەنێو باڵەخانەی بەڕێوەبەرایەتیی ناوچەی گرێ سپیدا گەمارۆ دراون و مەترسی لەسەر ژیانیان هەیە.

بەپێی راگەیێندراوەکەی لیژنەی ئاوارەکانی گرێ سپی، گەڕانەوەی ئەو خێزانانە لەسەر داوای بەڕێوەبەری ناوچەی گرێ سپی بووە، بۆیە داوا دەکات لایەنە پەیوەندیدارەکان بەرپرسیارێتییەکە بگرنە ئەستۆ و دەستێوەردانی بەپەلە بکەن بۆ پاراستنی گیانی گەمارۆدراوەکان. هەروەها داوای کرد لێکۆڵینەوەیەکی "جدی و شەفاف" لەو هێرشانە بکرێت و ئەنجامدەرانی سزا بدرێن.

لیژنەکە هۆشداریی داوەتە هاووڵاتییانی دیکەی کورد کە دەیانەوێت بگەڕێنەوە، پێش چوونیان بۆ گرێ سپی و ناوچەکانیان پێویستە هاوئاهەنگیی پێشوەختە لەگەڵ لیژنەی ئاوارەکاندا بکەن بۆ دڵنیابوون لە پاراستنی گیان و سەلامەتییان.

Azize Aslan, author of "Anticapitalist Economy in Rojava: The Contradictions of Revolution in the Kurdish Struggles" gives her opinion about peace processes and anti-capitalism.

"What now? – is a question that might be asked not only by someone who survived war but also anyone who works without knowing why, who consumes without feeling satisfied, and who lives with the sense that something essential has been taken from them. Cooperatives are not the only possible answer to that question, but they do propose something that the dominant peacebuilding paradigm – and the economic system that sustains it – systematically refuses to admit: that peace is not a state reached by signing a document but a way of living together each day, of recovering self-determination over one’s own time, needs and relationships, of asking the question How do we want to live? and believing that it can be answered through collective deliberation, by people themselves, without bosses or owners."

"Anyone who wants stability in the northeast, or in Syria overall, will have to answer both the ethnic and ecological questions at once, because the farmers were never given the luxury of separating them."

The Yazidi Shengal Resistance Units (YBS) are being formally integrated into the Iraqi army. The move comes amid wider developments towards the integration of Kurdish forces into state structures in Syria and the peace process between the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) and Ankara in Turkey.

In contested Sinjar, Yazidi representatives are also calling for greater local self-government and political representation, arguing that the community must have a greater say in governing its historic homeland following the 2014 genocide. The YBS opposed the 2020 agreement between Baghdad and the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) agreement, which sought to restructure security and administration in the region.

An official ceremony marking the momentYBS integration was held todayon October 26, overseen by the Iraqi Prime Minister and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, Ali al-Zaidi. “Loyalty to the martyrs is […] to protect what they were martyred for,” the YBS command stated at the ceremony. “The most successful thing against genocide is for our people to remain alive, free, safe […] on their own land.”

Sabah al-Numan, spokesperson for the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, also released a statement declaring that the YBS will be integrated into the official Iraqi security apparatus, meaning that security responsibility for Mount Sinjar would be formally transferred to the federal authorities. Al-Numan further stressed the responsibility of the federal government to protect the Yazidi community.

YBS members will fold into numerous Iraqi security institutions, including the police, according to Yazidi MP Murad Ismail, who refuted earlier comments from al-Zaidi suggesting the YBS would be integrated only into the predominantly Shiite Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF).

In Sinjar, the impact of the integration will be measured in the long run, in terms of whether security can be maintained, the Yazidi community have the safety and resources to re-build their historic homeland region, and the YBS fighters remain part of the Iraqi institutions. Whether this arrangement genuinely protects Yazidi autonomy and security will depend on how it works in practice – and on the parallel efforts of Yazidi political actors to advocate for their community in relation to Baghdad.

Kurdish-language education must be guaranteed under Syria’s constitution rather than limited to a few hours a week in schools, senior Kurdish politician Elham Ahmed said Monday, as Kurdish authorities push for broader cultural rights amid efforts to integrate their institutions into the Syrian state.

Speaking at a seminar at the University of Sulaimani on developments in northeast Syria (Rojava) and the ongoing integration process, Ahmed said Presidential Decree No. 13, issued in January, was a step toward recognizing Kurdish identity but fell short of guaranteeing education in the mother tongue.

“What we are currently fighting for is to have education in the Kurdish language enshrined in the constitution. This is our natural right as Kurds, and no one can treat it as a favor granted to us,” Ahmed said.