The Kurdish National Council has condemned the PYD terrorist militia for kidnapping political activists and journalists, which the Council believes is an attempt to intimidate the population and force emigration. This comes amid widespread dissatisfaction with the militia’s decisions and policies, which have had disastrous repercussions on the region’s economic and living conditions.
In a statement, the General Secretariat of the Kurdish National Council reported that PYD militants raided the homes of Fawaz Salih Benko, a member of the leadership body of the Kurdistan Democratic Unity Party and the Kurdish National Council, and Berivan Fouad Haj Ismail, a media activist with the Kurdish National Council. The raid occurred late on Sunday in the town of Amuda, in the Hasakah province. Both were taken to an unknown location in a barbaric manner, at gunpoint, intimidating their families and the neighborhood residents.
The General Secretariat emphasized that these raids and arrests are part of a systematic campaign against members of the Kurdish National Council, journalists, and activists. This campaign has included the burning of ten Council offices and affiliated party offices since last March.
The Secretariat noted that the PYD militia has kidnapped 11 Council members, including four journalists. It stressed that these actions are intended to cover up the militia’s failures at all levels and to hinder American and Western efforts to resume intra-Kurdish negotiations.
The General Secretariat condemned these systematic violations in the strongest terms, especially the barbaric arrest of women, calling it a dangerous and escalatory precedent. The Council held the PYD militia responsible for the consequences of these actions.
The Council appealed to the US-led international coalition to intervene and ensure the release of all those abducted by the PYD militia. It also called on local and international human rights organizations to condemn these practices and press for the release of all abductees.
(Source: SOC’s Media Department)
