Kurdish woman fight double battles against terrorism, patriarchy

Rojda Felat, Raqqa Offensive Commander

AIN ISSA, Syrian Kurdistan (Kurdistan24) - "The Kurdish women in Syria are having a heavy double battle against terrorism and social norms," said a commander of the Syrian Kurdish Women Protection Units (YPJ).  

Rojda Felat, the general commander of the offensive launched by the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) to retake the city of Raqqa from the Islamic State (IS) group, spoke to Kurdistan24 about women's movement in Rojava.

Felat said women are fighting to eradicate terrorism, and at the same time to liberate women from the restrictions of patriarchal rules that have become social norms.

"We struggle to lift the injustice [imposed] on women as well the violence against women," she added.

Felat further explained that liberating women from all kinds of violence, eliminating all illegal practices and lifting injustices are her duties and missions.

On the outcome of the women's battle against terrorism, Felat said gender equality is becoming the new norm.

"Whenever and wherever women suffer from oppression, we fight for them and we work for freeing them," she said.

"We are working to eliminate any practices against the active presence of women in society," she further explained.

Raqqa offensive, dubbed Wrath of Euphrates operation, is not the first battle Felat leads fighting against the IS insurgents.

In the operation to free Manbij and the offensive to liberate northern Raqqa, she was a general commander.

Fighters like Rojda made great sacrifices over the past few years after the breakout of the Syrian civil war in 2011.

In one instance, about 22 people of her family and relatives lost their lives in an explosion at a wedding party in Hasaka a few months ago.

Therefore, she and many women in the area make fighting against Da'esh their top priority.

On the role of the leading woman in the military domain, Felat said any woman who receives military training, learns fighting tactics, and improves them, can train thousands of fighters.

"I am not the only women with this capacity as a general commander, but we inherit all these high spirits and principles from our great heroes and martyrs," she said.

"Our martyr Arin Mirkan [the heroine of Kobani] is one of our idols," she concluded.

With the experience of a woman like Rojda Felat or Arin Mirkan, the world sees to what extent the Kurdish women, especially in Rojava, have made huge progress in obtaining women's rights.

So, thousands of female fighters are performing the duty of protecting woman rights.

Felat made it clear that most women's fight are driven by the sense of taking revenge for their fellows, and they fight with the expectation of victory hoping that no more violence against women occurs in the area.

 

Editing by Ava Homa

(Kurdistan24 correspondent Redwan Bezar conducted the interview in Kobani)