Nadine Maenza urges U.S. Congress to protect Kurds; end siege of Kobani-Swedia

The U.S. House of Representatives Foreign Affairs Committee held a session today to discuss the future of Syria after Assad, with the participation of a number of experts, including the former chair of the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom, Nadine Maenza. In her remarks, she focused on the situation of minorities and the growing threats facing the regions of North and East Syria and the Kurds.

She stated that the Syrian Democratic Forces sacrificed around 11,000 fighters in the war against ISIS/Daesh mercenaries and established a governance model that includes minorities and strengthens social cohesion, noting that half of the leadership of the Autonomous Administration are women.

She added that U.S. President Donald Trump had called on the interim government in Syria to halt the attack on Kurdish neighborhoods in Aleppo, where Christians and Yazidis live, yet military operations continued toward North and East Syria.

Maenza pointed out that “Islamist fighters within government forces documented themselves committing serious violations,” including the execution of families and grave abuses against civilians. She stressed the need to monitor the implementation of the agreement between the SDF and the interim government and to impose sanctions in the event of non-compliance, emphasizing that maintaining local governance and local security is essential for protecting minorities.

She further noted that the 30 January agreement between the SDF and the government in Damascus can only be assessed through its actual implementation on the ground. She warned that settling for merely symbolic representation of the Kurds, alongside the promotion of individuals accused of committing war crimes and subject to international sanctions to senior positions, renders promises of equal citizenship fraught with real existential risks for the Kurds.

She stated that Alawites were subjected last March to horrific killings, with the death toll estimated at around 1,500 civilians, including children and women, suggesting that the real number may be higher. She also noted that the Druze in Suwayda faced severe violence in July, resulting in the killing of more than 1,600 people, in addition to kidnappings and the displacement of around 120,000 individuals, while four civilians were executed only days ago.

The former chair of the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom, Nadine Maenza, recommended designating Syria as a “Country of Particular Concern” unless genuine changes occur, establishing mechanisms to monitor and enforce the 30 January agreement, and passing the Kurdish Protection Act.

She also called for demanding that Damascus lift the siege on Kobani and Suwayda, amend the interim constitution to ensure equal citizenship, expel foreign fighters, and rectify the legal status of the Yazidis.

ANHA