Demonstrations against the Turkish state’s occupation attacks in Kurdistan took place in Frankfurt am Main and Zurich on Saturday. Kurdish associations had already protested in dozens of cities in Europe last weekend against the Turkish army’s invasion of southern Kurdistan. In Germany, the umbrella organization KON-MED had under the motto “Against Erdogan’s war of aggression! Against the entry into the war of the Barzanî clan! Peace in Kurdistan!”
The background to the protests is Turkey’s increasing troop mobilization for a war of aggression on Iraqi territory. The Erdogan government uses the presence of the guerrillas as an excuse. The PDK party, which is dominated by the Barzanî clan, wants to be directly involved in the operation with ground troops. On Friday, the Prime Minister of the Kurdistan Region of Iraq (KRI), Mesrûr Barzanî, was received by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan in Istanbul. The images of the gathering, showing an aged dictator with his humble vassal, sparked outrage among the Kurdish public.
Politicians, intellectuals and artists as well as a large part of the population in Kurdistan, divided into four, are opposed to this war and are demanding a peaceful solution.
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Demonstration in Frankfurt: “Murderer Erdogan”
The demonstration in Frankfurt started at 2 p.m. at the main train station and was directed against the Turkish occupation of Kurdistan and the aid provided by the KDP. The collaboration of the Barzanî clan with the Turkish oppressors was symbolically depicted on banners. The slogan “Murderer Erdogan!” was repeated over and over again at the demonstration.
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Demonstration in Zurich: “Down with the betrayal!”
At the call of the Democratic Kurdish Community of Switzerland (CDK-S) and the women’s association YJK-S, hundreds of people from various political contexts took to the streets in Zurich. The motto was “Down with treason”, in Kurdish “Bimre Îxanet”. Speeches called for the unity of Kurds. At the beginning of the demonstration, a minute’s silence was held for those who died in the Kurdish liberation struggle.
In a speech on behalf of the CDK-S, Ali Şimşek stated that only the cohesion of the Kurdish people can stop the occupation of Kurdistan. “The Turkish state has wanted to occupy the Medya Defense Zones for a long time. The resistance of the guerrillas means defeat for him. Now the invasion with the troops of the KDP is to be continued. Turkey wants to occupy and exploit our country with the support of the KDP. The Turkish attacks are not random, but follow a concept against all parts of Kurdistan. All Kurds must fight against this as one.”
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