VIYAN AMED

Qamishlo- Canda Mihemed, member of the Syrian Democratic Council (SDC), spoke to NuJINHA about the plans of the Turkish state to occupy North and East Syria. Indicating that North and East Syria has been suffering from clashes and conflicts for 11 years, she noted that there are many reasons for the continuation of these clashes and conflicts. “Until now, no solution has been found for this crisis,” she said, “The main reasons for the conflicts in Syria are the invasion attacks of the Turkish state.

‘The aim is to eliminate the democratic project’

Canda Mihemed continued to speak as follows: “After the Rojava Revolution in NE Syria, the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria, a democratic project which is based on pluralism and respect for women’s rights, was established. People from all nations and religions have united under the umbrella of this democratic project. They resist all kinds of attacks and fight to have a peaceful life. The invading Turkish state wants to revive ISIS in order to eliminate this project; the Turkish state provides all kinds of support to terrorist groups to kill Kurdish people. Since the people of NE Syria fight with the spirit of revolution, the Turkish state is defeated by our forces. In addition, the fighters of the YPJ/YPG keep frustrating all the plans and projects of the invading Turkish state.”

‘Afrin that looked like heaven was turned into a hell’

“Afrin was a city that looked like heaven; however, the Turkish state has turned it into a hell since it occupied Afrin,” Canda Mihemed said, “Afrin was one of the cities where people lived in peace together. Afrin was one of the safest cities of NE Syria. The city was known for its beauty, safety and communal life. Many forcibly displaced people settled in Afrin due to the ongoing clashes and conflicts in Syria. For this reason, the Turkish state has turned Afrin that looked like heaven into a hell.”

‘People are forced to leave their homeland’

Recalling the resistance in Kobanê against ISIS, Canda Mihemed said, “ISIS was defeated in Kobanê. Now, the Turkish state wants to complete what was left uncompleted by ISIS. The Turkish state aims to destroy cultures and impose its culture and language by changing the demographic structure of the region. The main aim of the Turkish state is to occupy all regions of NE Syria. For this reason, it attacks all regions in order to force people to leave their homeland.”

 ‘ISIS has sleeper cells in NE Syria’

Emphasizing that ISIS has sleeper cells in North and East Syria, Canda Mihemed noted that another aim of the Turkish state is to revive these sleeper cells. “Now, ISIS has sleeper cells in North and East Syria and they pose a threat for all people in the region. Last year, ISIS attempted to revive in Hasakah; however, our forces did not allow them.  The Turkish government recently targeted the infrastructure of our regions by using warplanes. In the Turkish airstrikes, the prisons, where ISIS members have been held, and al-Hol camp were targeted. The aim of the airstrikes were to pave the way for ISIS members to escape from prison so that they could attack the people. Whenever stability is assured in our region, the Turkish state attacks immediately to destroy the stability of the region.”

 ‘The revival of ISIS will pose a threat to people all over the world’

Emphasizing that the revival of ISIS will pose a threat to women and all people living in the region, Canda Mihemed said, “The mentality of ISIS poses a threat to women. Raqqa was previously under the control of ISIS and women did not have rights. After the liberation of Raqqa, women began to take part in all spheres of life. When women unite, they can change their societies and build a free life.”

 “There are currently hundreds of thousands of ISIS members held in prison,” Canda Mihemed said, adding, “If the Turkish state continues to attack the region, ISIS will revive in the region. The revival of ISIS will pose a threat not only to people in the region but also people all over the world. A common stance should be exhibited against the ongoing Turkish state in Syria.”

 ‘We will not allow our lands to be occupied’

Underlining that they would defend themselves against all kinds of attacks, Canda Mihemed concluded her speech as follows: “We will not allow the Turkish state to occupy our lands. We, as women, will keep fighting at the frontline. Thanks to leader Apo (Abdullah Öcalan) and our thousands of martyrs, we have built the democratic project. As the people of NE Syria, we will uphold our gains and we will always stand by peace, democracy and stability.”