Qamishlo residents protest Turkish occupation under SDF and new Syria flags

Today, tens of thousands from various components of Qamishlo, including women, men, elders, and youth, participated in a massive rally to support the resistance shown by SDF fighters and YPJ fighters against the attacks of the Turkish occupation state and its mercenaries from the so-called "National Army."

The massive rally started in front of the Sony Roundabout in the center of Qamishlo's market. Participants raised the flags of the Syrian Democratic Forces, the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria, the Women’s Protection Units, the Women's Community Protection Units (HPC-Jin), and the flag of Syria’s independence.

The front rows of the rally carried slogans such as “Let’s unite against the occupation,” “No to the occupation,” “SDF is our strength,” “Long live the brotherhood of peoples,” “Long live the unity of Kurds, Arabs, and Syriacs,” and “Our resistance guarantees our freedom.” They also called for “Kurdish unity,” chanting “Long live Kurdish unity, long live the resistance of Rojava.”

The rally marched through Qamishlo’s main street, echoing chants like “We are all SDF… SDF is our hope,” “No to Turkish occupation… Turkey is a terrorist,” and “One, one, one… the Syrian people are one.”

The massive crowd reached the Martyr Kahraman Roundabout, where they first observed a minute of silence in honor of the martyrs. Talat Younis, speaking on behalf of the Popular Initiative, began his speech by congratulating the Syrian people on the fall of the Baath Party regime led by Bashar al-Assad.

He pointed to the suffering of the Syrian people under Baath Party rule, where they endured “the harshest forms of violence, killing, oppression, displacement, enforced disappearances, and arbitrary detention.” He also highlighted the oppression and deprivation faced by the Kurdish people, who were denied even their most basic rights.

Talat Younis stressed that the Syrian people have ultimately achieved victory, saying, “But this victory must guarantee us the building of a democratic, pluralistic, and participatory Syria where the rights of all components, sects, and groups are equal, with no denial, exclusion, or marginalization. The rights of all components must be preserved like a mosaic.”

He also emphasized the demands of the Syrian people after the fall of Bashar al-Assad, continuing, “Our demand after Bashar al-Assad is to build a free, democratic Syria in which all Syrian people participate.”

Talat Younis affirmed the openness of North and East Syria to “dialogue with all democratic forces to build the future of Syria hand in hand.”

He praised the resistance of the Syrian Democratic Forces in confronting the attacks of the Turkish occupation and its mercenaries, referring to them as “mercenaries of al-Amshat and al-Hamzat.”

Concluding his speech, Talat Younis called on all Kurdish political parties to unify their vision and sit at the dialogue table to achieve Kurdish unity. He warned that the people would hold accountable those who miss the opportunity to secure Kurdish rights, stating, “Today, the people are sending a message to Kurdish forces to unify their stance, and a Kurdish delegation should go to Damascus to demand the rights of the Kurdish people. Let us preserve the gains achieved thanks to the blood of our heroic martyrs.”

A-H

ANHA