Elders stand in Turkish clash zones ‘to prevent sons from being killed’

[EC]

A group of elderly locals have been camping for over eight days in a mountainous area just outside the Lice district of the southeastern province of Diyarbakır, describing themselves “voluntary human shields trying to prevent our sons from getting killed.”

Tension in Turkey’s southeast have been running high amid clashes between the security forces and outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) militants and continuing police raids on troubled neighborhoods in city centers, which often result in injuries and even deaths.

In such a situation, hundreds of locals have voluntarily flocked to the Fis Plain. The plain is known as the birthplace of the PKK since the outlawed group held its first congress in the region in 1978, and deadly clashes broke out between the military and the militants in the area over a week ago.

One of the people in the “voluntary human shield” group is 80-year-old Sakine Arat, who has lost five of her 10 children in the decades-long Kurdish conflict.

“The ones they call terrorists are our sons, daughters, nephews. How can we let the military kill them? We do not want our sons or the soldiers be killed. How many more people must die before this war is over?” Arat said.

The human shield issue became a hot subject recently with people, often including Kurdish politicians and lawmakers from the Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP), appearing in the areas where the Turkish military has conducted operations against the PKK militants. The military, which usually suspends operations in such cases, has been accusing the outlawed PKK of using civilians as “human shields” to prevent military operations.

Read more: http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/elders-stand-in-turkish-clash-zones-to-prevent-sons-from-being-killed.aspx

[famousdayandyear]

This is an ignorant question.  Does Kurdistan overlap borders with Iraq, Syria, and Turkey?  Are the Turks currently siding with ISIS against the Kurds.  I read the Turks have conducted massive air attacks, killing many Kurd fighters (whom the US is supposed to be assisting with arms).

 It seems those arms are winding up in the hands of the government in Baghdad, and never make their way to the Kurds, who provide a fierce resistance to the barbaric Islamic state. 

Any knowledgeable discussion would be very much appreciated.

[EC]

Yep.

Kurdistan is much of northern Iraq (from the edge of Mosul on up is the accepted boarder to the Kurdish zone there, Mosul itself was retained by the Iraqis because of the dam. That provides water and power to everything downstream and blowing the dam would wipe out Iraq as a viable country, so it was deemed wise to keep it in their hands!), the north-eastern part of Syria and a good chunk of southern Turkey. Since despite being incredibly good and tenacious fighters the Kurds are quite simply not terribly war like, their ancestral lands got partitioned over the centuries. 

[famousdayandyear]

Yep.

Kurdistan is much of northern Iraq (from the edge of Mosul on up is the accepted boarder to the Kurdish zone there, Mosul itself was retained by the Iraqis because of the dam. That provides water and power to everything downstream and blowing the dam would wipe out Iraq as a viable country, so it was deemed wise to keep it in their hands!), the north-eastern part of Syria and a good chunk of southern Turkey. Since despite being incredibly good and tenacious fighters the Kurds are quite simply not terribly war like, their ancestral lands got partitioned over the centuries. 

Thank you, EC.
With better armament and support from US, could the Kurds be an effective deterrent to the spread of an Islamic State; or with Jordan and Egypt help (perhaps the Saudis), could a coalition like that be possible?
Or is the region so tribal, even Lawrence could not pull it off.

[EC]

Having kicked around there a fair bit, I'd say within limits, yes.

They really have zero interest in anything outside their ancestral territory, but within it they will destroy ISIS given half a chance. They are doing it now, despite poor supply, almost no heavy weapons (and those are, to be kind, antiques) and having to do one of the biggest humanitarian rescues (the Yazadhi people) in the middle of an all out war.

Turkey isn't helping matters, of course. They attack the Kurds constantly and give active aid and comfort to ISIS as long as ISIS is killing Kurds. Jordan is doing what it can to help out in terms of supplies and some combat troops for "training" purposes, though they are pretty much swamped with Syrian refugees (the camps are horrendous and the Jordanians are basically bankrupting themselves to feed the refugees) and the troubles on their own borders. The French and Aussies are pretty good with slipping the odd pallet or 6 of munitions into a humanitarian load, the Iranians have their finger in the pie to the tune of a steady though small supply line, and the UK (wink) is doing it's part.

It's one of those "bitty" wars at the moment. You'll be up in the mountains there and suddenly get a friendly voice on the comms with a Montana accent, or get vectored in to where you are needed by a Parisien drawl.

[famousdayandyear]

Having kicked around there a fair bit, I'd say within limits, yes.

They really have zero interest in anything outside their ancestral territory, but within it they will destroy ISIS given half a chance. They are doing it now, despite poor supply, almost no heavy weapons (and those are, to be kind, antiques) and having to do one of the biggest humanitarian rescues (the Yazadhi people) in the middle of an all out war.

Turkey isn't helping matters, of course. They attack the Kurds constantly and give active aid and comfort to ISIS as long as ISIS is killing Kurds. Jordan is doing what it can to help out in terms of supplies and some combat troops for "training" purposes, though they are pretty much swamped with Syrian refugees (the camps are horrendous and the Jordanians are basically bankrupting themselves to feed the refugees) and the troubles on their own borders. The French and Aussies are pretty good with slipping the odd pallet or 6 of munitions into a humanitarian load, the Iranians have their finger in the pie to the tune of a steady though small supply line, and the UK (wink) is doing it's part.

It's one of those "bitty" wars at the moment. You'll be up in the mountains there and suddenly get a friendly voice on the comms with a Montana accent, or get vectored in to where you are needed by a Parisien drawl.

Heard that Israel is helping in a small way by purchasing oil from Kurdistan.  Puzzles me why Turkey has become such a renegade--didn't we (US and UK) view them as buds?  Are they not part of NATO? 

Guess I'll give up trying to understand that part of the world.  What stories you must have seeing it up 'close and personal'. (Please do not misunderstand.  I would never minimize operating in the danger zones)

[EC]

Israel is indeed helping - both with oil purchases and, lets just say that quite a few of the advisors in with Jordanian or French papers are more comfortable speaking Hebrew.

Turkey - it's different under Erdogan. Much more theocratic than formerly and he dreams of the Ottoman Empire resurgent.