Kurds
All topics-
Combatting Islamic State
Foreign fighters ″crusade″ against IS
IS may have proved adept at attracting foreign nationals to its cause, but many have also joined up to fight the pseudo caliphate. And there′s no lack of religious fervour among the ranks either – some see it as their Christian duty. By Manar Ammar
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The Syrian exodus
"Stop Assad's bombs, then we'll go back"
Many Germans are wondering why so many Syrians are currently thronging its borders. Most of those arriving in Europe at the moment, however, have already been on the move for a long time. By Kristin Helberg
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Civil war in Syria
First Assad, then "Islamic State"
If the self-styled "Islamic State" is to be successfully combatted, the Syrian conflict has to be resolved. And for this, one thing is necessary above all: an alternative to the Assad regime. This alternative can only be created in safe zones, writes Kristin Helberg
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Interview with a survivor of the Suruc attack
"All we want is freedom"
The faces of the 31 members of the Federation of Socialist Youth Associations (SGDF) killed in the attack on 20 July still gaze down from banners strung around the courtyard of the Amara Culture Centre where the bomb was detonated. Inside, surrounded by broken windows, sits Adnan, a 25-year-old Kurd, who describes the IS terrorism that drove him out of Kobani, only to catch up with him across the border in Suruc. Fabian Kohler spoke to him about the attack
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Erdogan and the Kurdish conflict
A battle for votes
For a brief moment, NATO allies thought they were witnessing a major policy turnaround when Turkey finally joined the campaign against Islamic State. But in actual fact, Ankara's first priority appears to be to move against the PKK and the HDP, the pro-Kurdish party that prevented President Erdogan's party from retaining its parliamentary majority. By Markus Bernath
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The Kurdish conflict
Barzani in a tight spot
Massoud Barzani, president of the Kurdistan Region in Iraq, wants rid of the PKK. Demanding that the group leaves the Qandil Mountains is a politically calculated move. But the Iraqi Kurds are not united in this view: another leading Iraqi Kurd politician and former Iraqi president, Jalal Talabani, wants the PKK to stay. An analysis by Birgit Svensson in Erbil
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Turkish military operations against IS and the PKK
Erdogan's double strategy
After years of hesitancy, Turkey has begun launching airstrikes on IS positions in Syria. At the same time, Ankara has also deployed its air force against fighters with the banned Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK). Analysts suspect that President Erdogan is now pursuing a strategy all his own. By Cigdem Akyol in Istanbul
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Kurds in Iraq
When hope turns to fear
By extending its airstrikes against the terror organisation IS to include Kurdish militant PKK targets, Turkey risks escalating conflict with other Kurdish groups in the region. The Iraqi Kurds are worried. By Birgit Svensson in Irbil
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After the attack in Suruc
Turkey fighting on two fronts
After a decade of relative calm, terror has returned to Turkey. The country has now decided to fight this terror on two flanks simultaneously. According to Rainer Hermann, this escalation could have been avoided
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Interview with Turkish political scientist Gulistan Gurbey
Litmus test for Turkish democracy
Political scientist Gulistan Gurbey sees two consequences of the electoral success of the pro-Kurdish HDP: firstly, it has prevented the introduction of a presidential system favoured by President Erdogan and secondly, it will have positive impulses for Turkish democracy. Nevertheless, she believes that turbulent times lie ahead. Interview conducted by Basak Ozay
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Turkey after the general election
No balcony speeches for Erdogan
The fact that a Kurd, of all people, has mounted a successful challenge to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, is tantamount to a revolution. One thing is clear: the AKP can no longer continue deriding its critics as it has previously done. But what options are now open to the party? By Cigdem Akyol in Istanbul
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Parliamentary election in Turkey
Erdogan's biggest political defeat
Coalition, minority government or new elections? President Erdogan's AKP has lost its absolute majority in Turkey's parliamentary poll. What's more, a new party is now poised to enter parliament. What does this mean for the future of the country? Michael Martens sends this analysis from Istanbul