Kobani city…is the symbol of resistance

Uprising 2004

Tens of thousands of Kurds rose up in the cities of Rojava, the capital Damascus and the city of Aleppo in the 2004 Qamishlo uprising, the city of Kobani, like other Kurdish towns in Rojava, revolted against the Baath regime in Syria and removed the security forces from the city and the Government sent military reinforcements to raid the city, and hundreds of young men were arrested and imprisoned for years unaccounted for 18 years later.”

Kobani... cradle of revolution

About a year and a half after the start of the Syrian crisis, the city of Kobani witnessed the beginning of a revolution in North and East Syria. On 19 July, the people of the region liberated Kobani from the Damascus Government, followed by the cities of Afrin and Jazira, and formed AANES in these areas, building institutions and forces that defend them.

That was while things started to get more complicated on the Syrian scene, the popular uprisings turned into armed conflict and then external interventions began to affect the course of events, until things turned into a crisis that was getting more complicated.

With each passing day.

In contrast, the revolution in the three cantons (Kobani, Afrin and Jazira) had a practical impact. The people had shed authoritarian rule and had begun to administer their affairs on the basis of justice, freedom, equality and democracy, building on the democratic nation's project.

The war against ISIS... historical attitude

Shortly after it ignited the spark of the revolution, Kobani canton was encircled by its four parts, Turkey North, mercenary groups East, West and South, attacks successively launched as YPG and YPJ defended Kobani until September 2014, when ISIS began mobilizing its forces and launched an offensive from all fronts towards the city of Kobani, an armed with the arsenal of weapons acquired from the bases of the Iraqi and Syrian armies, who fled from their bases, leaving large areas under ISIS domination of Raqqa, Deir ez-Zor and Mosul.

ISIS launched its attack on 15 September, and about 3 weeks later, it arrived in the outskirts of the city, which over 134 days witnessed a direct street war, in which the YPG and YPJ withdrew in defence of Kobani, inflicting unprecedented casualties on ISIS.

This resistance resonated globally, with millions of demonstrators around the world emerging in 93 countries such as Argentina, Japan, Afghanistan, Egypt, Morocco and Turkey, along with most European countries, in massive protests; It called on governments to act with dozens of fighters defending the last neighbourhoods of Kobani.

The International Day of Solidarity with Kobani was announced on 1 November; The demonstrations engulfed major roads in major cities around the world and airports, and Turkish embassies denounced Turkey's direct support for ISIS.

In contrast, the city's small streets were experiencing the most violent confrontations: in the face of car bombs and suicide bombings, young Kurdish men were fighting the battle of existence with their individual weapons and with strong will, freeing Kobani a house and street, until they declared great victory.

ISIS mercenaries were defeated from the last streets of Kobani on 26 January 2015, and liberation battles began in North and East Syria from ISIS.

The Battle of Kobani and cooperation between units and a number of factions of the Free Army and the International Coalition formed the ground for the formation of the SDF, which proceeded at a steady pace to liberate the area until the last ISIS stronghold in Baghouz in March 2019.

The victory in Kobani was the beginning of the collapse of the Turkish scheme in Syria, while the battles were most intense on the streets of the city Erdogan came out and said in a speech” Kobani is about to be collapsed” the Turkish plan was based on the deployment of ISIS along the Turkish-Syrian border, but after the defeat of ISIS, Turkey itself is working to implement this project, striving to occupy areas liberated from ISIS and deploying former ISIS mercenaries and extremist hard liners ideology in the areas it occupies.

Because of all that is said, Kobani occupies a great place in the hearts of Kurdistan and the world. It is the first city visited by leader Abdullah Ocalan when he crossed into Rojava, the city from which the Rojava Revolution was launched, and the city that first defeated ISIS mercenaries, all of which was transformed into a symbol of Kurds and humanity.

Because it is of great value and symbolizes the Kurds, and because it once failed the Turkish scheme, Erdogan today seeks revenge, pursuing the policy of occupation and reviving the new Ottoman, to which Kobani stands a stumbling block.

T/ Satt.

ANHA