62-552: The Kurdish National Council ( KNC , Kurdish : Encûmena Niştimanî ya Kurdî li Sûriyê , ENKS ; Arabic : المجلس الوطني الكوردي , romanized : al-Majlis al-Waṭaniyy Al-Kurdi ) is a Syrian Kurdish political party. While the KNC had initially more international support than the ruling Democratic Union Party (PYD) during the early years of the Syrian civil war and a strong supporter basis among some Syrian Kurdish refugees ,
124-753: A conference of the Internal Security Forces took place in Raqqa . At the conference, two flags were adopted for the ISF; one saying only Internal Security Forces in Arabic, used in the Raqqa, Tabqa, Deir Ezzor, and Manbij regions , and one saying Asayish as well, used in the Jazira, Afrin, and Euphrates regions . The Asayish police has around 15,000 personnel: 10,000 in the Jazira Region , 3,000 in
186-947: A deal for the aim of creating a polyethnic and progressive society and policy in the Rojava region, creating the Movement for a Democratic Society (TEV-DEM). The Kurdish National Council has been criticized by PYD supporters in Syrian Kurdistan. The KNC has been accused by PYD supporters of working with Turkey and the Syrian opposition forces against the Federation of Northern Syria – Rojava (NSR). In 2016, some KNC leaders and members were accused by ruling PYD authorities of corruption, money laundering, spying, making propaganda for Turkey and involving in assassinations of NSR authorities and politicians. The KNC have refused to formally join
248-669: A sociology researcher at the University of Oxford, commenting that "It is hard to know what the KNC actually wants. There is a fundamental contradiction between the Kurdish nationalist ideology of the KNC and the political project of its Syrian allies. Sometimes it seems that the only consistent policy of the KNC is to oppose anything that the PYD does." Some Syrian Kurdish refugees in Iraqi Kurdistan, who are believed to mostly support
310-510: A variety that was an important literary language since the 14th century, but it was replaced by Central Kurdish in the 20th century. European scholars have maintained that Gorani is separate from Kurdish and that Kurdish is synonymous with the Northern Kurdish group, whereas ethnic Kurds maintain that Kurdish encompasses any of the unique languages or dialects spoken by Kurds that are not spoken by neighbouring ethnic groups. Gorani
372-401: Is a matter of debate, but the differences between Laki and other Southern Kurdish dialects are minimal. The literary output in Kurdish was mostly confined to poetry until the early 20th century, when more general literature became developed. Today, the two principal written Kurdish dialects are Kurmanji and Sorani. Sorani is, along with Arabic , one of the two official languages of Iraq and
434-500: Is also a point of contention for KNC and PYD, even though both parties have very similar aims. As such, the KNC has condemned the PYD's declaration of a federation in northern Syria as an attempt to break up Syria without previous "debate and democratic participation". The KNC further claimed that "it strictly opposes any attempt to impose federalism on the Syrian people without a preceding discussion". These statements have raised confusion among some mostly pro-PYD observers, with Carl Drott,
496-567: Is also spoken in northeast Iran, as well as in certain areas of Armenia and Azerbaijan . Kurdish varieties constitute a dialect continuum , with some mutually unintelligible varieties, and collectively have 26 million native speakers. The main varieties of Kurdish are Kurmanji , Sorani , and Southern Kurdish ( Xwarîn ). The majority of the Kurds speak Kurmanji, and most Kurdish texts are written in Kurmanji and Sorani. Kurmanji
558-558: Is an official language in Iraq. In Syria, on the other hand, publishing materials in Kurdish is forbidden, though this prohibition is not enforced any more due to the Syrian civil war . Before August 2002, the Turkish government placed severe restrictions on the use of Kurdish, prohibiting the language in education and broadcast media. In March 2006, Turkey allowed private television channels to begin airing programming in Kurdish. However,
620-622: Is classified as part of the Zaza–Gorani branch of Indo-Iranian languages. The Zaza language , spoken mainly in Turkey, differs both grammatically and in vocabulary and is generally not understandable by Gorani speakers but it is considered related to Gorani. Almost all Zaza-speaking communities, as well as speakers of the closely related Shabaki dialect spoken in parts of Iraqi Kurdistan , identify themselves as ethnic Kurds. Geoffrey Haig and Ergin Öpengin in their recent study suggest grouping
682-545: Is in political documents simply referred to as "Kurdish". The Kurdish varieties belong to the Iranian branch of the Indo-European family . They are generally classified as Northwestern Iranian languages, or by some scholars as intermediate between Northwestern and Southwestern Iranian. Martin van Bruinessen notes that "Kurdish has a strong South-Western Iranian element", whereas "Zaza and Gurani [...] do belong to
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#1732765233920744-458: Is not a unified language, its many dialects are interrelated and at the same time distinguishable from other Western Iranian languages . The same source classifies different Kurdish dialects as two main groups, northern and central. The average Kurmanji speaker does not find it easy to communicate with the inhabitants of Sulaymaniyah or Halabja . Some linguistic scholars assert that the term "Kurdish" has been applied extrinsically in describing
806-459: Is not recognized in Turkey, and prior to 2013 the use of Kurdish names containing the letters X , W , and Q , which do not exist in the Turkish alphabet , was not allowed. In 2012, Kurdish-language lessons became an elective subject in public schools. Previously, Kurdish education had only been possible in private institutions. In Iran, though it is used in some local media and newspapers, it
868-472: Is not used in public schools. In 2005, 80 Syrian and Iranian Kurds took part in an experiment and gained scholarships to study in Kurdistan Region , Iraq, in their native tongue. In Kyrgyzstan , 96.21% of the Kurdish population speak Kurdish as their native language. In Kazakhstan, the corresponding percentage is 88.7%. Asayish (Syria) The Internal Security Forces , also known as
930-574: Is organized in every area with Christian population, and provides security and solutions to social problems in collaboration with other Asayish units. Though the Sutoro is officially subordinate to the Asayish, and represented on the Asayish executive board, it operates largely autonomous in regard to its internal affairs. Thus, it patrols the Christian neighborhoods of Qamishli without interference by
992-700: Is rather attractive. While Asayish is primarily a police, the forces of Asayish were involved in tensions against the National Defense Forces , a pro-government militia. The tensions led to the Battle of Hasakah, in August 2016 . Ultimately, the Syrian Arab Army was forced to give up neighborhoods in the city. Following rising tensions in the city of Qamishli the Asayish and contingents of its HAT units were embroiled in further conflict with
1054-461: Is translated to simply mean Kurdish. The Mokriani variety of Sorani is widely spoken in Mokrian. Piranshahr and Mahabad are two principal cities of the Mokrian area. Zaza–Gorani languages , which are spoken by communities in the wider area who identify as ethnic Kurds, are not linguistically classified as Kurdish. Zaza-Gorani is classified as adjunct to Kurdish, although authorities differ in
1116-417: Is working towards providing all citizens with Asayish training. The ultimate hope is that once the vast majority of citizens have been trained, security can be maintained amongst the citizens and the Asayish itself can be dissolved. In addition to the use of weapons, Asayish members are also trained in "mediation, ethics, the history of Kurdistan, imperialism, the psychological war waged by popular culture and
1178-664: Is written in the Hawar alphabet , a derivation of the Latin script , and Sorani is written in the Sorani alphabet , a derivation of the Arabic script . A separate group of non-Kurdish Northwestern Iranian languages, the Zaza–Gorani languages , are also spoken by several million ethnic Kurds. The classification of Laki as a dialect of Southern Kurdish or as a fourth language under Kurdish
1240-661: The Afrin Region , and 2,000 in the Euphrates Region . Ethnically, Kurds dominate the Asayish, though half of the active personnel in Jazira Region is Arab, while around 300 Turkmens have also enlisted, mostly in Tell Abyad . About 30% of the Asayish are women. Members of the force are paid $ 120 monthly salaries, which is above the average monthly salaries of Syrian civil servants, so that Asayish employment
1302-784: The Asayish in the Jazira , Euphrates , and Afrin Regions , is the internal security and police force in the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria . Formed in the early stages of the Syrian Civil War , it had initially been established to police areas controlled by the Kurdish Supreme Committee . In October 2013, the Asayish claimed to have 4,000 members; by 2017, the number had reportedly risen to over 15,000. According to
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#17327652339201364-707: The Constitution of North and East Syria , policing is the responsibility of the autonomous sub-regions. Overall, the local Asayish forces are composed of 26 official bureaus that aim to provide security and solutions to social problems. The six main units of the Asayish are Checkpoints Administration, Anti-Terror Forces Command ( Kurdish : Hêzên Antî Teror , HAT), Intelligence Directorate, Organized Crime Directorate, Traffic Directorate and Treasury Directorate. By 2016, 218 Asayish centers were established and 385 checkpoints with 10 Asayish members in each checkpoint were set up. 105 Asayish offices provide security against ISIL on
1426-436: The Asayish has created a special branch composed solely of women which is dedicated to gender-based violence, family disputes between women and protection of women during protests, and public celebrations. Their objective is to take care of every case in which a woman gets involved, from gender-based violence to a bank robbery. Female members of the force face additional risk from attacks by radical Islamists . However, joining
1488-468: The Asayish is perceived as a huge act of personal and societal liberation from an extremely patriarchical background, for ethnic Kurdish and ethnic Arab women alike. Throughout the region, the municipal Civilian Defense Forces (HPC) and the regional Self-Defense Forces (HXP) also serve local-level security. According to the pro-PYD Peace in Kurdistan Campaign , the region's government
1550-619: The Asayish, and when the Sutoro members want to appoint someone, they don't need the approval of the Asayish. The Assyrian Khabour Guards and Nattoreh also provide security in towns along the Khabur River . On 17 May 2017, the Raqqa Internal Security Forces were established for policing in Raqqa . On 25 May 2017, a female branch of the Asayish was established in Al-Shaddadah . On 4 July 2018,
1612-778: The HNC's policies. An official in the Kurdish Unity Party, part of the KNC, stated that "The Syrian opposition are against federalism and constitutional Kurdish national rights , and they want to delay discussing Kurdish rights in the future." On 30 April, the Afrin branch of the Kurdish National Council released a statement condemning the April 2017 Turkish airstrikes in Syria and Iraq . "We condemn and denounce
1674-608: The KDP, though he said he would return to Rojava. According to SOHR , the Asayish arrested further Yekîtî Party and KDPS members in Amuda and the Afrin Canton on 16 August, most prominently Yekîtî politician Anwar Naso. The arrests prompted further sit-ins and protests by KNC supporters. Most of the arrested KNC members, among them Anwar Naso, were released a few hours later. The rest of them were released on 24 November 2016. After
1736-514: The KNC, have been also critical of the federalism declaration by PYD. Some of them fear that further tensions in Syria would arise as result of the declaration, while they simply wish for an end of hostilities. Despite these divisions about how to implement Kurdish autonomy, the KNC still generally supports federalism. This was shown when Syrian opposition leader Michel Kilo outright condemned any attempt of Kurds to establish federalism in Syria, negatively comparing them to Israel . The KNC reacted to
1798-406: The KNC. Carl Drott, a sociology researcher at the University of Oxford, said in his interview on Ara News that "it is hard to know what the KNC actually wants. There is a fundamental contradiction between the Kurdish nationalist ideology of the KNC and the political project of its Syrian allies (Syrian opposition). Sometimes it seems that the only consistent policy of the KNC is to oppose anything that
1860-707: The Kurdish National Council adopted a military militia, called the Rojava Peshmerga (in Kurdish: Peşmerge rojava). The KNC leader claimed that partially in response to the military power of the PYD, the KNC formed its own paramilitary wing, the Rojava Peshmerga. According to the claims of Ibrahim Biro , the Rojava Peshmergas are mostly recruited from Syrian Kurdish refugees and Syrian Army deserters in Kurdistan Region . Because of
1922-402: The Kurdish National Council to form the Kurdish Supreme Committee along with a popular defence force to defend Syrian Kurdistan . The agreement became obsolete when the PYD with several pro-federal Kurdish parties abandoned the coalition after they accused the KNC of allying with Syrian rebels that were attacking Kurdish cities. Later, the PYD with other Kurdish, Arab and Assyrian parties made
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1984-537: The Kurdish languages into Northern Kurdish, Central Kurdish, Southern Kurdish, Zaza , and Gorani, and avoid the subgrouping Zaza–Gorani. The notable professor Zare Yusupova has carried out a lot of work and research into the Gorani dialect (as well as many other minority/ancient Kurdish dialects). During his stay in Damascus , historian Ibn Wahshiyya came across two books on agriculture written in Kurdish, one on
2046-432: The Kurds of Amadiya . This work is very important in Kurdish history as it is the first acknowledgment of the widespread use of a distinctive Kurdish language. Garzoni was given the title Father of Kurdology by later scholars. The Kurdish language was banned in a large portion of Kurdistan for some time. After the 1980 Turkish coup d'état until 1991 the use of the Kurdish language was illegal in Turkey. Today, Sorani
2108-593: The National Defense Forces leading to the Battle of Qamishli, in April 2021 . In the course of the Raqqa campaign , the Asayish established the Raqqa Internal Security Forces . As with other institutions in the autonomous region, the Asayish are striving for a force based on gender equality. An estimated 25% of Asayish members are women, and the local Asayish forces are co-led by a man and woman. In addition to protecting civilians from armed attacks,
2170-554: The PYD does". The PYD members have described the KNC as "an enemy of the peoples of Syria." The KNC meanwhile have described the PYD as dictators and tyrants and accused them of betraying Kurds in Syria by working with Assad and replacing one dictatorship with their own. On 13 August 2016, Asayish arrested Ibrahim Biro, leader of the KNC and the Kurdish Union (Yekîtî) Party, in Qamishli and took him to an unknown location. At
2232-904: The PYD-led NSR administration citing PYD persecution of political opponents. The KNC leader Ibrahim Biro said in his interview on Turkish pro-government Sabah newspaper that PYD is ruling in a dictatorial manner committing gross human rights violations in the process and that western countries are overlooking these violations in using PKK against ISIS, he also stressed that Western countries should start supporting their own forces instead of PYD and other NSR entities. KNC members and leaders have had meetings with Turkish authorities, citing need for dialogue with Turkey, if Kurds are to gain autonomy from Damascus. There have been several demonstrations held by KNC supporters against PYD citing PYD refusal to share power and ongoing persecution of Kurdish political opposition. Some observers have had difficulties understanding
2294-605: The Syrian Yazidi Council left both the KNC as well as the Syrian National Council after months of tension over the "failure to acknowledge the SNC's Arabism and Islamism problems" and the lack of representation for Yazidis within the Syrian opposition. On 25 October, the Kurdish National Council condemned the "indiscriminate" Turkish bombings on populated towns such as Jandairis and other towns in
2356-412: The Turkish aggression and demand the government of Ankara to stop the [attacks] immediately, we also ask PYD [Democratic Union Party] authorities to change its approach and authoritarian behavior and move towards a national and responsible approach to serve the unity of the Kurds and the Kurdish project in the face of challenges and serious risks in the present time and in the future for our Kurdish people",
2418-428: The Turkish government said that they must avoid showing children's cartoons , or educational programs that teach Kurdish, and could broadcast only for 45 minutes a day or four hours a week. The state-run Turkish Radio and Television Corporation (TRT) started its 24-hour Kurdish television station on 1 January 2009 with the motto "we live under the same sky". The Turkish prime minister sent a video message in Kurdish to
2480-453: The approximate borders of the areas where the main ethnic core of the speakers of the contemporary Kurdish dialects was formed. The most argued hypothesis on the localisation of the ethnic territory of the Kurds remains D.N. Mackenzie 's theory, proposed in the early 1960s (Mackenzie 1961). Developing the ideas of P. Tedesco (1921: 255) and regarding the common phonetic isoglosses shared by Kurdish, Persian, and Baluchi , Mackenzie concluded that
2542-590: The arrest, while PYD supporters took the South Kurdistan flag , symbol of both KNC as well as KDP, from the Yekîtî Party's office in southern Qamishli. Biro was released the next day, claiming that he had been detained for the KNC's "political activities" and that the PYD would fail, because "it is impossible for the people of Syria to accept another dictatorship." He subsequently sought asylum in Dohuk with
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2604-478: The council stated. Although the KNC has joined the Syrian National Coalition and is a part of the Syrian opposition, there are some key differences between the KNC and the SNC over their approach to the issue of decentralization , with the KNC pressing for Kurdish autonomy , whereas the SNC has rejected anything more than administrative decentralization. The issue of federalism and autonomy
2666-520: The culture of the vine and the palm tree, and the other on water and the means of finding it out in unknown ground. He translated both from Kurdish into Arabic in the early 9th century AD. Among the earliest Kurdish religious texts is the Yazidi Black Book , the sacred book of Yazidi faith. It is considered to have been authored sometime in the 13th century AD by Hassan bin Adi (b. 1195 AD),
2728-553: The details. groups Kurdish with Zaza Gorani within a "Northwestern I" group, while Glottolog based on Encyclopædia Iranica prefers an areal grouping of "Central dialects" (or "Kermanic") within Northwest Iranic, with Kurdish but not Zaza-Gorani grouped with "Kermanic". Gorani is distinct from Northern and Central Kurdish, yet shares vocabulary with both of them and there are some grammatical similarities with Central Kurdish. The Hawrami dialects of Gorani includes
2790-564: The fact that this usage reflects the sense of ethnic identity and unity among the Kurds. From a linguistic or at least a grammatical point of view, however, Kurmanji and Sorani differ as much from each other as English and German, and it would seem appropriate to refer to them as languages. For example, Sorani has neither gender nor case-endings, whereas Kurmanji has both.... Differences in vocabulary and pronunciation are not as great as between German and English, but they are still considerable. According to Encyclopaedia of Islam , although Kurdish
2852-493: The fifteenth century. From the 15th to 17th centuries, classical Kurdish poets and writers developed a literary language. The most notable classical Kurdish poets from this period were Ali Hariri , Ahmad Khani , Malaye Jaziri and Faqi Tayran . The Italian priest Maurizio Garzoni published the first Kurdish grammar titled Grammatica e Vocabolario della Lingua Kurda in Rome in 1787 after eighteen years of missionary work among
2914-479: The frontlines across the region. Larger cities have general directorates that are responsible for all aspects of security including road controls. Each sub-region has a HAT command and each Asayish center organizes itself autonomously. Overall chief of the police is the former journalist Ciwan Ibrahim. In the Jazira Region , the Asayish are further complemented by the Assyrian Sutoro police force, which
2976-524: The great-grandnephew of Sheikh Adi ibn Musafir (d. 1162), the founder of the faith. It contains the Yazidi account of the creation of the world, the origin of man, the story of Adam and Eve and the major prohibitions of the faith. According to The Cambridge History of the Kurds , "the first proper 'text'" written in Kurdish is a short Christian prayer. It was written in Armenian characters, and dates from
3038-490: The language the Kurds speak, whereas some ethnic Kurds have used the word term to simply describe their ethnicity and refer to their language as Kurmanji , Sorani , Hewrami , Kermanshahi , Kalhori or whatever other dialect or language they speak. Some historians have noted that it is only recently that the Kurds who speak the Sorani dialect have begun referring to their language as Kurdî , in addition to their identity, which
3100-581: The north-west Iranian group". Ludwig Paul concludes that Kurdish seems to be a Northwestern Iranian language in origin, but acknowledges that it shares many traits with Southwestern Iranian languages like Persian , apparently due to longstanding and intense historical contacts. Windfuhr identified Kurdish dialects as Parthian , albeit with a Median substratum. Windfuhr and Frye assume an eastern origin for Kurdish and consider it as related to eastern and central Iranian dialects. The present state of knowledge about Kurdish allows, at least roughly, drawing
3162-703: The northern Aleppo Governorate. The council stated that "the Turkish Army and allied Islamist rebels have been killing civilians, carrying out indiscriminate shelling and airstrikes on populated areas." and demanded the Turkish Armed Forces to withdraw its forces. A KNC member also denounced the Turkish focus on attacking the Syrian Democratic Forces as part of the Turkish military intervention in Syria . On 24 November, Asayish released some KNC politicians and many activists with
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#17327652339203224-722: The opening ceremony, which was attended by Minister of Culture and other state officials. The channel uses the X , W , and Q letters during broadcasting. However, most of these restrictions on private Kurdish television channels were relaxed in September 2009. In 2010, Kurdish municipalities in the southeast began printing marriage certificates , water bills, construction and road signs , as well as emergency, social and cultural notices in Kurdish alongside Turkish. Also Imams began to deliver Friday sermons in Kurdish and Esnaf price tags in Kurdish. Many mayors were tried for issuing public documents in Kurdish language. The Kurdish alphabet
3286-545: The other languages spoken by Kurds in the region including the Gorani language in parts of Iranian Kurdistan and Iraqi Kurdistan. Philip G. Kreyenbroek , an expert writing in 1992, says: Since 1932 most Kurds have used the Roman script to write Kurmanji.... Sorani is normally written in an adapted form of the Arabic script.... Reasons for describing Kurmanji and Sorani as 'dialects' of one language are their common origin and
3348-457: The outbreak of the Battle of al-Hasakah between pro-government and pro-PYD forces on the same day of August 2016, the KNC condemned the Syrian government for their attacks on civilians and urged both sides to stop fighting. At the same time, however, KNC politicians also said that the PYD should allow the Rojava Peshmerga into the city to protect the Kurdish population and that, at best, the government should be driven from Rojava. On 19 September,
3410-604: The overwhelming popular support the PYD enjoys has eroded support for the KNC in Syrian Kurdistan , losing almost all popular support. Since 2012, the alleged authoritarian and Kurdish nationalist politics of the KNC has led many political parties to leave it. Over the years, its membership has shrunk and it has lost many of its supporters. Among the factions that left the KNC were the Kurdish Democratic Progressive Party in 2015, and
3472-773: The parties in the Kurdish National Alliance in Syria and the Syrian Yazidi Council in 2016. As a result, the KNC had only two seats left in the Syrian Democratic Council by 2017. The Kurdish National Council was founded in Erbil on the 26 October 2011, under the sponsorship of Kurdistan Region President Massoud Barzani , following the earlier creation of the Syrian National Council . The organization
3534-501: The refusal of the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria, the Rojava Peshmerga was unable to participate in the Syrian civil war or control any area in Syria militarily. Kurdish language Ancient Medieval Modern Kurdish ( Kurdî , کوردی ) is a Northwestern Iranian language or group of languages spoken by Kurds in the region of Kurdistan , namely in southeast Turkey , northern Iraq , northwest Iran , and northern Syria . It
3596-406: The rest to be released "in the following days". Zara Salih of the Yekîtî Party said that his party saw "this first step as a positive sign and a good start" and that his party's leadership is "ready to begin negotiations with PYD and the Movement for a Democratic Society, to reach a new deal." On 30 March 2017, the Kurdish National Council withdrew from the High Negotiations Committee in protest of
3658-423: The same day, reporter Wedat Hussein Ali who was working for Roj TV, a TV channel linked to the PKK, had been killed in KDP-controlled area. Some ARA News journalists alluded that the two incidents might be linked to the rivalry between the PKK and KDP, which support the PYD and KNC, respectively. After Biro's detention, dozens who belonged to Yekîtî Party, organized a sit-in in front of the city's PYD office to condemn
3720-407: The speakers of these three languages may once have been in closer contact. Kurdish varieties are divided into three or four groups, with varying degrees of mutual intelligibility. In historical evolution terms, Kurmanji is less modified than Sorani and Pehlewani in both phonetic and morphological structure. The Sorani group has been influenced by among other things its closer cultural proximity to
3782-464: The statement in which it accused Kilo of racism and acting to please President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and Turkey . Nevertheless, the KNC also argued that the Kurds still had friends among the Syrian National Coalition, thereby reiterating their general support for the Syrian opposition in the wider struggle against Assad who they consider the greatest issue facing Kurds in Syria and a common enemy for both Arab and Kurdish opposition. Politically, in 2015,
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#17327652339203844-414: Was originally composed of 11 Syrian Kurdish parties, however, by May 2012 this had grown to 15. Several KNC parties have also on occasion come into conflict with other Kurdish groups like the Democratic Union Party (PYD). In order to reduce tensions, Massoud Barzani mediated between the two groups in July 2012 at a diplomatic meeting in Erbil. As a result, the PYD and some other Kurdish groups joined with
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