23.01. – 12:00 CET Peoples Caravan on its way through germany and Italy
Peoples Caravan on its way through Germany and Italy
The first part of the People’s Caravan, which started in Hanover this morning, will be welcomed in Leipzig with a press conference at 6 p.m. The second part will be in Darmstadt this morning, in Frankfurt am Main at noon and in Freiburg in the evening.The third part from Italy will make its way from Milan and Bologna today. It will arrive in Padua this evening.
The caravan calls on all people in Europe, and especially media professionals, to support, report on and join the caravan.
Al-Aqtan-Prison Evacuated – Fighters join resistance in Kobanê
This morning around 900 SDF fighters withdrew from al-Aqtan Prison in Raqqa.
The Prison holds many members of ISIS and was target of attacks by the Turkish state, ISIS and HTS for days. The SDF fighters who now repositiones to Kobanê resisted these attacks and stopped many escape attemps of imprisoned ISIS groups. In Kobanê they were welcomed by the local population and will join the defence of the besieged city.
‘Terror’ attack on Kurdish activists in Antwerp: 6 injured
Yesterday evening, a terrorist attack took place at a Kurdish protest in Antwerp, Belgium. At around 7:30 p.m., several aggressors attacked the peaceful protest with knives and seriously injured 6 people. The Democratic Council of Belgian Kurdish Communities (NAV-BEL) reported that the attackers, acted out of extremist, jihadist motives. It can also be assumed that the attack was planned and targeted. The police already arrested four suspects. Furthermore, NAV-BEL announced that it cancels today’s protest but will continue to protest in the coming days and weeks.
Syriac Union warns of repeated attacks
Because of the war against Rojava, the European Syriac Union warns of a new threat to the Christian population in the Khabur Valley. A recent statement says that the region is once again facing an “existential threat” after large parts of the Assyrian-Aramaic population were already displaced in 2015 by attacks from the terrorist organization “Islamic State” (ISIS).
During that time many villages had been destroyed and thousands of people became homeless. Since then, the local population has worked hard to rebuild cultural and social life—despiteall the adversity.But now the ESU fears a resurgence of violence. “Today, there is a real threat that armed groups continue the ideology left behind by ISIS. – This leaves the population of Khabur Valley with great fear, not only concerning their safety but also the demographic and historical survival of the community. Decisive action is now needed to protect the civilian population and prevent another humanitarian catastrophe”. Protecting minorities in northeastern Syria is an international responsibility for stability, heritage and diversity.
Khabur Valley is not only a cultural center for the Assyrian-Aramaic-Chaldean population, but also a historical place of refuge sincemore than 100 Years.
