Politics

Turkish Defense Minister, citing Paris violence, threatens Rojava

Referring to Saturday’s protests in Paris, Akar said, “The snake fed by the French began to bite them" and "no one should expect us to tolerate the terrorist elements nesting near our border.”

Laurie Mylroie 2022/12/26 13:47

Turkey's National Defence Minister Hulusi Akar, right, arrives to inspect troops at the border with Syria in Hatay, Turkey, on Feb. 3, 2020. (Photo: Turkish Defence Ministry via AP, Pool)

Europe Turkey Paris attack SDF

WASHINGTON DC, United States (Kurdistan 24) - On Sunday, Turkish Defense Minister Hulusi Akar, accompanied by several senior military officers, visited a Turkish command center on Turkey’s border with Syria.

The command center is across the border from northwest Syria, but the event followed the day after Akar made an important revelation in an end-of-the-year press conference: Ankara is holding talks with Moscow to facilitate a cross-border Turkish ground offensive that would target the Kurdish People’s Protection Units (YPG), which constitutes the leadership and the core of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), America’a main partner in the fight against ISIS in Syria.

Turkey regards the YPG as terrorists, essentially the Syrian branch of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK). While at the Syrian border, Akar denounced the PKK in strong terms, citing Saturday’s unrest in Paris, where the PKK led a demonstration protesting the murder of three Kurdish activists the day before.

Akar’s remarks followed a tweet earlier on Sunday by Ibrahim Kalin, spokesman for Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, and who expressed a similar perspective.

The Ahmet Kaya Cultural Center, which was attacked on Friday, is “a rallying point for the [Kurdish] community” and “home to the Centre Democratique Kurde de France (CDKF),” Le Monde reported, describing the CDKF as “the legal front for the PKK in France.”

“The PKK,” the French paper explained, “had wanted to make the demonstration a moment of recollection, as much as a demonstration of strength in the heart of France and the European Union, which still classifies it as a terrorist organization.”

Hulusi Akar, Ibrahim Kalin Denounce PKK for Paris Violence

Akar spoke the more harshly against the PKK. “Everyone must see the ‘true face’ of the PKK terror group,” Turkish media quoted Akar as saying, as he visited Turkey’s command center near the Syrian border.

Referring to Saturday’s protests in Paris, Akar said, “They saw how troublesome it is to help and support terrorists,” adding, “The snake fed by the French began to bite them.”

Speaking of Turkey’s situation, Akar affirmed, “No one should expect us to tolerate the terrorist elements nesting near our border.”

“The Turkish Armed Forces have taken and will take all necessary measures at the appropriate place and time for the security of our country and noble nation,” Akar stated, once again, raising the specter of a cross-border ground assault against the YPG.

Kalin’s tweet was somewhat more restrained. It included a short video of burning and overturned cars.

“The same terrorist organization you support in Syria,” Kalin stated,“now they are burning the streets of Paris.”

It is unclear what impact the violence will have on French opinion or policy. It has resulted largely in property damage, although 31 French police officers were also injured, and there are risks to the Kurds, as Kurdistan 24 cautioned.

“Ankara is pushing for a cross-border attack into northeast Syria, and the violence in Paris can be used to further justify such an assault,” we wrote shortly before Akar did pretty much just that.

The gunman, who was been identified only as William M., is scheduled to appear in a Paris court on Monday, while the CDKF has said it will hold another protest on Monday.