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65-753: It was claimed that the YPS was originally formed on 20 December 2015 by the Kurdish rebels as a version of the YPG in Northern Kurdistan ( Turkey ). A youth wing of the PKK, is the YDG-H, which in 2015 reorganized itself into what is known as the YPS of today. The YPS is mainly composed of members of the former YDG-H , who have been operating since 2013. The YPS is currently training for conventional urban warfare against

130-604: A former Kurdish politician by the name of Serafettin Elci , said, "we are the last generation you are going to negotiate with. After us, you will confront an angry youth that has grown up in war.” In 2015, the YDG-H formed into what is now the YPS. A strong push for the YPS-Jin to form was the call for feminists to take a stand. The curfews imposed on certain districts in Turkey made it very difficult for mothers and women to go out into

195-574: A terrorist organization. The flag of the YPG is also a banned symbol in Germany as per Strafgesetzbuch section 86a , although the organization itself is not recognised as terrorist. Finland and Sweden's alleged support for the YPG, is one of the points which caused Turkey to oppose Finland and Sweden's NATO accession bid . In June 2022, then–Finnish President Sauli Niinistö announced in Madrid , after

260-561: A video of YPG members training alongside M2s, and there is currently no evidence that such a transfer has occurred. YDG-H The Patriotic Revolutionary Youth Movement ( Kurdish : Tevgera Ciwanen Welatparêzên Şoreşger , Turkish : Yurtsever Devrimci Gençlik Hareket , YDG-H ) was the urban, militant youth wing of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) from 2006-2015. Trained by more experienced PKK cadres for urban fighting, and consisting mostly of children and adults in

325-506: A wholly Kurdish force, the YPG began to recruit Arabs from at least 2012. In July 2012, the YPG had a standoff with Syrian government forces in the Kurdish city of Kobanî and the surrounding areas. After negotiations, government forces withdrew and the YPG took control of Kobanî , Amuda , and Afrin . By December 2012, it had expanded to eight brigades , which were formed in Qamishlo , Kobanî, and Ras al-Ayn (Serê Kaniyê), and in

390-424: A young age. Unlike the PKK, the YPS does not have a strong hierarchy when it comes to decisions, however, YPS method of discipline is independent cells operating on their own ambition. YPS fighters are also most commonly trained by the YPG which allowed them to be more careful in planning ambushed and roadside bombings, it is also speculated that they are exposed to ISIS tactics in these changes in fighting. The YPS

455-641: Is a Kurdish militant group in Syria and the primary component of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF). YPG provides updates about its activities through YPG Press Office Telegram channel and social media accounts. The YPG mostly consists of Kurds , but also includes Arabs and foreign volunteers ; it is closely allied to the Syriac Military Council , an Assyrian militia. The YPG was formed in 2011. It expanded rapidly in

520-623: Is autonomy. Although operating under an overarching tactical rubric, YPG brigades are inculcated with a high degree of freedom and can adapt to the changing battlefield. The YPG relies heavily on snipers and backs them by suppressing enemy fire using mobile heavy machine guns. It also uses roadside bombs to prevent outflanking maneuvers, particularly at night. Its lines have generally held when attacked by Islamic State (IS) forces who have better equipment, including helmets and body armor. The YPG and People's Defense Forces (HPG) have also trained and equipped more than 1,000 Yazidis , who operate in

585-440: Is caught trying to they will be shot. President Erdogan has said on multiple occasions that there is no Kurdish problem, only a terrorist problem and he will not stop until he defeats every last one of them. In instances where a family's child has been killed, who was in the ranks of YPS, they are not likely permitted to see the bodies. In one case a young 17-year-old girl left to join the YPS, however, she never returned home. She

650-646: Is located in South East Turkey towards the Iran and Iraq border. Like Sur, Sirnak, and Nusaybin, Yüksekova is not very different. The Turkish Army regularly patrols areas of Yüksekova in armored vehicles and tanks in an effort to secure the area from resistance fighters. In this particular area there have been instances of the YPS killing Turkish police in what they explain as an eye for an eye. On October 8, 2016, four civilians were killed in Yüksekova, this made

715-632: Is that Euphrates Volcano was limited to coordinating the activities of independent Kurdish and Arab groups, while the SDF is a single organisation made up of Kurds, Arabs, and Assyrians . The first success of the SDF was the capture of the strategic ethnically Arab town of al-Hawl from IS during the al-Hawl offensive in November 2015. This was followed in December by the Tishrin Dam offensive . The dam

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780-454: Is the reorganized branch of the youth wing in the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK). In the Şırnak 's Cizre district, many students are joining the ranks of YPS-Jin. This is in part due to the ongoing conflict with the Turkish government 's role in terrorizing the Kurdish people in the region . The YPS called upon all students, youths, and women to join the YPS and YPS-Jin in the fight against

845-595: The Free Syrian Army and IS in January 2014. The YPG collaborated with FSA groups to fight IS in Raqqa province; the group also formed an operations room with multiple FSA factions, called Euphrates Volcano . However, the general outcome of this campaign was a massive advance by IS, which effectively separated the eastern part of Rojava from the main force of FSA rebels. IS followed up on its success by attacking

910-550: The Mount Sinjar area as local defense units under their supervision. The YPG calls itself a people's army, and therefore appoints officers by internal elections. A 20-year-old female YPJ fighter named Zlukh Hamo (Nom de guerre: Avesta Khabur) was reported to have carried out a suicide attack towards Turkish troops and a tank during the early phase of the Afrin Offensive , killing herself and several soldiers in

975-661: The Syrian Civil War and came to predominate over other armed Syrian Kurdish groups. A sister militia, the Women's Protection Units (YPJ), fights alongside them. The YPG is active in the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (Rojava), particularly in its Kurdish regions . In early 2015, the group won a major victory over the Islamic State (IS) during the siege of Kobanî , where

1040-562: The Turkish government ; previous Kurdish rebel groups have followed predominantly guerilla tactics of warfare, however the new method of warfare seen in the Kurdish-Turkish conflict has led to speculation of civil war in Turkey. The YPS initially took a defensive posture in the Kurdish-Turkish conflict (1978-present) and has become a major opponent of the Turkish army (TSK) and Turkish government and has co-operated with Kurdish opposition fighters against TSK. Multiple branches of

1105-692: The al-Shaddadi offensive , followed by the Manbij offensive in May, and the Raqqa and Aleppo offensives in November. These operations extended SDF-controlled territory, usually at IS's expense. On 7 April 2016, the Kurdish neighborhood of Sheikh Maqsood in Aleppo was shelled with mortars that may have contained chemical agents (160 killed or wounded). Spokesperson for the YPG said that Saudi Arabia -backed Jaysh al-Islam (Army of Islam) rebel group has attacked

1170-615: The conquest of Tell Abyad , linking up Kobanî with Hasakah in July 2015. With the capture of Tell Abyad, the YPG has also broken a major supply route of fighters and goods for the Islamic State. With these offensives, the YPG had begun to make advances into areas that did not always have a Kurdish majority. When the YPG and the FSA entered the border town of Tell Abyad in June 2015, parts of

1235-437: The 15-25 age group, it was reportedly established in 2006. The group started to clash with Turkish security forces and tried to enforce their authority in the areas they were located in 2014 as part of a strategy which involved unilateral declaration of self-management in various towns in southeastern Turkey , and creation of trenches and barricades reinforced with IEDs and explosives to deny security forces access. The group

1300-706: The FSA and IS had led to a normalization in the relations between FSA and YPG since the end of 2013. In February 2015, the YPG signed a judicial agreement with the Levant Front in Aleppo . The YPG was able and willing to offensively engage and put pressure on IS and had built up a track record as a reliable military partner of the US. In 2015, the YPG began its advance on Tel Abyad , a move they have planned for since November 2013. With American close air support, offensives near Hasakah and from Hasakah westward culminated in

1365-558: The Islamic State, AFVs left behind by the Syrian Arab Army (SyAA), equipment turned over by the SyAA in exchange for a safe passage (for example, after retreating from Mennagh airbase in 2014), and armoured vehicles donated by the US for light armoured vehicles and true armour. While other Syrian Civil War factions, such as the Islamic State , amassed an arsenal of hundreds of tanks and other armored fighting vehicles captured from

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1430-459: The Kurdish neighborhood of Aleppo with "forbidden weapons" many times since the war's start. The Women's Protection Units (YPJ), also known as the Women's Defense Units, is the YPG's female brigade, which was set up in 2012. Kurdish media have said that YPJ troops became vital during the siege of Kobanî . Consisting of approximately 20,000 fighters, they make up around 40% of the YPG. In 2017,

1495-768: The Self Protection units (YXG). Existing underground Kurdish political parties, the Democratic Union Party (PYD) and the Kurdish National Council (KNC), joined to form the Kurdish Supreme Committee (KSC) and established the People's Protection Units (YPG) militia to defend Kurdish-inhabited areas in northern Syria, i.e. Syrian Kurdistan and the Kurdish enclave of Sheikh Maqsood in Aleppo . Originally

1560-467: The Syrian Arab Army, the YPG, which frequently avoided combat with government forces, had to make do with scraps. The YPG was able to acquire several vehicle types, including the BTR-60 and BRDM-2 , that had been abandoned in government bases by their previous owners. With no other option, even these abandoned vehicles would be repaired and repurposed by the YPG. Even when the engine couldn't be repaired,

1625-528: The Turkish Government. The YPS was also armed with machine guns, RPGs, and explosives. The Turkish government responded with curfews which only led to bloody and violent conflict between the two groups. In March 2016, the region was considered clear by the Turkish government, the curfew was lifted, and 279 resistance fighters were killed, including the youngest who was a 13-year-old girl. Yüksekova

1690-425: The Turkish government. The YPS calls on everyone who can join to do so and that everyone should be a part of the growing movement. YPS calls on everyone who is affected by the Turkish state , whether it be curfews, occupation, or both, to join them to defend themselves against the oppression of the Turkish government. The YPS calls on young men and women to join their ranks to defend their towns. A popular phrase that

1755-502: The YDG-H are often found to be part of the YPS today since the YDG-H reorganized themselves as the YPS and share differences between the commands in the PKK . One main difference from the PKK , is the willingness to negotiate and compromise with Turkish officials even with high casualty rates. This has shown how YPS and YPS-Jin members show that they are not afraid to die, which can be a result of growing up in conflict and becoming traumatized at

1820-707: The YPG and the FSA in Kobanî Canton in March and fighting its way to the gates of the city of Kobanî in September. The actual siege of Kobanî approximately coincided with an escalation in the American-led intervention in Syria . This intervention had started with aiding the FSA against the government, but when the FSA was getting defeated by IS in eastern Syria, it escalated to bombing IS on Syrian territory. With

1885-498: The YPG began to form units called regiments in translation, though they are smaller than comparable units in standard militaries: According to a report in IHS Jane's regarding the YPG, Relying on speed, stealth, and surprise, it is the archetypal guerrilla army, able to deploy quickly to front lines and concentrate its forces before quickly redirecting the axis of its attack to outflank and ambush its enemy. The key to its success

1950-552: The YPG began to receive air and ground support from the United States and other Combined Joint Task Force – Operation Inherent Resolve militaries. Since then, the YPG has primarily fought against IS, as well as on occasion fighting other Syrian rebel groups and the Turkish Armed Forces . In late 2015, the YPG became part of the SDF, an umbrella group intended to better incorporate Arabs and minorities into

2015-438: The YPG conquered the surrounding government-controlled areas: al-Darbasiyah (Kurdish: Dirbêsî), Tel Tamer and al-Malikiyah (Kurdish: Dêrika Hemko). The subsequent Battle of Ras al-Ayn started in earnest when on 19 November 2012, the al-Nusra Front and a second al-Qaeda affiliate, Ghuraba al-Sham , attacked Kurdish positions in the town. The battle ended with a YPG victory in July 2013. While many rebel groups clashed with

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2080-600: The YPG to unite the Syrian Kurds under its banner and caused it to become the de facto army of the Syrian Kurds. In October 2013, YPG fighters took control of al-Yaarubiyah (Til Koçer) following intense clashes with IS. The clashes lasted about three days, with the Til Koçer border gate to Iraq being taken in a major offensive launched on the night of 24 October. PYD leader Salih Muslim told Stêrk TV that this success created an alternative against efforts to hold

2145-469: The YPG, jihadist and Salafist groups did so the most often. The YPG proved to be the only Kurdish militia able to effectively resist the fundamentalists. While the YPG protected the Kurdish communities it was able to extract a price: it prevented the emergence of new, rival militias and forced existing ones to cooperate with or join the YPG forces on its terms. This was how the Islamist attacks enabled

2210-448: The YPG. In order to assist the SDF in its fight against Islamic State forces in northern Syria, the YPG received a large number of infantry mobility vehicles ( IMVs ) and mine-resistant ambush protected vehicles ( MRAPs ) from the US, which appear to have replaced some of the YPG's more bizarre homemade armour designs. Surprisingly, the YPG was permitted to keep these vehicles even after IS

2275-503: The YPS as a terrorist organizations. As such, any time the YPS develops a stronghold in a district such as Nusaybin, Sirnak, Sur, or Gever the Turkish Army is there to push back. In many cases where YPS set up barricades, Turkey met them with equal if not more power such as tanks, automatic machine guns, and helicopters with gun mounts. In some instances even surrounding the entire district with tanks for no one can escape, and if anyone

2340-448: The YPS declare Sur as an autonomous zone. Between December and March 2015, the Turkish Army sent in tanks, helicopters, and guns to take back control from resistance fighters. Turkish officials blame the start of the fighting in this district on the YPS. Turkish officials cited YPS as attempting to take control of the region and referring to them as a terrorist group. The YPS set up barricades, roadblocks, checkpoints, and trenches to keep out

2405-589: The YPS have been formed in Kurdish districts in Turkey , usually as a result of clashes or curfews imposed by the Turkish government . Such branches are in Nusaybin, Sirnak, Sur, and Yüksekova (also known as Gever). There is also a female branch of the YPS known as the YPS-Jin that was founded in 2016 one year after the initial YPS foundation, one of the causes which they fight for is gender equality. Some members of

2470-411: The YPS retaliate by ambushing an armored vehicle containing four Turkish forces officials, all of which were killed by the YPS. This is not the only instance were ambushed on Turkish police have happened in Yüksekova. On September 11, 2016, YPS members in the district of Cumhuriyet, in Yüksekova, ambushed a police checkpoint which resulted in the death of four Turkish police officers. Turkey had labeled

2535-399: The YPS uses is "Bijî berxwedana gelê Kurd", which means "long live the resistance of the Kurdish people". The YPS believes that now is the time to fight for one's freedoms and not doing so will only give power to the state. Any youth who has the call for revolution is urged to join the YPS, said one YPS commander in an interview. Source: Nusaybin is a city in Turkey on the border of Syria,

2600-434: The YPS withdrawing from Nusaybin in an effort to better protect the civilians inside the city limits. There were hundreds of casualties in Nusaybin, which is what eventually led the YPS to withdraw, to avoid any possible further massacres of innocents, who they fight to protect. Source: Şırnak is a town in Turkey near the border of Iraq and Syria. In July 2015, Turkey bombed Şırnak which ended up killing PKK officials and

2665-526: The YPS-Jin were also once victims of ISIS during the Yazidi genocide that took place in 2014 . Women who were once victims of ISIS, whether it be they were sold into the sex slave industry or their family was murdered, joined the ranks of YPS and YPS-Jin to avenge the victims of the Yazidis genocide. The YDG-H is the group that YPS was formed from. The YDG-H is the youth branch of the PKK resistance movement and

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2730-427: The agreement with Turkey, that Finland does not see the YPG as a terrorist organization and that Finland will continue to support the YPG. The Turkish terror classification is not shared by key international bodies in the fight against the Islamic State in which the YPG takes part. Due to this Turkish view, US Army Special Operations Commander General Raymond Thomas suggested the YPG to change their name, after which

2795-609: The area declared autonomy from the Turkish government and the YPS-Jin established there to protect this newly found autonomy and defend against any state-sanctioned attacks in the region. The YPS-Jin protected the signing of the declaration of autonomy in Yüksekova , saying that life will be either free or not exist at all. The YDG-H was the youth portion of the militant wing of the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) mostly between 15 and 25 years old. Former members of

2860-476: The city is a stronghold in the Kurdish resistance against Turkey. In Nusaybin the Turkish Government imposed a curfew on its citizens on March 14 in an effort to combat the growing resistance movements in Turkey and after the curfew was lifted much of what was left of the district was unrecognizable. The YPS used barricades to block Turkish police from entering the city and many of the people walking

2925-457: The conflict and violence just grew from there. Many other bombings and killings of resistance fighters and Turkish police followed suit. In January 2016, the YPS commander in Şırnak released a statement bashing Kurds who do not take part in the resistance against Turkey and do not support the YPS. Like Nusaybin, Şırnak also had a curfew placed on it and like Nusaybin, there were barricades made from road rubble. Between March 14 and November 14 of 2016

2990-468: The districts of Afrin , al-Malikiyah , and al-Bab . The YPG did not initially take an offensive posture in the Syrian Civil War. Aiming mostly to defend Kurdish-majority areas, it avoided engaging Syrian government forces, which still controlled several enclaves in Kurdish territory. The YPG changed this policy when Ras al-Ayn was taken by the al-Qaeda -affiliated al-Nusra Front . At first

3055-503: The hulls of BTR-60s were strapped to the backs of trucks and used as improvised AFVs. With little armor and other heavy weaponry, the YPG relied almost entirely on Coalition airpower to destroy Islamic State vehicles and fighting positions. While this meant that Islamic State-operated AFVs were frequently destroyed before they could inflict serious damage on YPG forces, it also meant that most AFVs were completely obliterated by Coalition aircraft, preventing their capture and further use with

3120-409: The name of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) was found. Kurdish activists attempted to unify themselves following the 2004 Qamishli riots . The riots began as clashes between rivaling football fans before taking a political turn, with Arab fans raising pictures of Saddam Hussein while the Kurdish fans reportedly proclaimed "We will sacrifice our lives for Bush". This resulted in clashes between

3185-484: The peak of the conflict. Also, 39 pits that were used to create barricades were filled and over 200 barricades were demolished. Sur is in the district of Diyarbakır province in Eastern Turkey. In July 2015, homes, churches, and mosques were all under threat from Turkish police making it almost impossible for those who once lived there to return. Many people speculated the reason for the conflict in this region

3250-425: The people of Şırnak are allowed to go home only between the hours of 5:00 a.m. and 10:00 p.m. This partial curfew is in place to clean up the pot holes and barricades left by resistance movements, says Turkish officials, which was referred to as Martyr Gendarmerie Lieutenant Mehmet Çiftçi. After this clean up it was discovered approximately 508 militants were killed and 1,845 bombs were set off in Şırnak during

3315-712: The population fled the intense fighting and the airstrikes. The Syrian Democratic Forces was established in Hasakah on 11 October 2015. It has its origins in the YPG-FSA collaboration against IS, which had previously led to the establishment of the Euphrates Volcano joint operations room in 2014. Many of the partners are the same, and even the logo / flag with the Blue Euphrates symbol has common traits with that of Euphrates Volcano. The primary difference

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3380-487: The process. The attack was commended by pro-SDF sources as a courageous attack against a tank using explosives, which killed her in the process. In comparison to the other major factions involved in the Syrian Civil War, the YPG has the least armor. To compensate for the resulting capability gap, the YPG became heavily involved in the production of DIY armoured vehicles, typically based on bulldozers or large trucks. The YPG has traditionally relied on vehicles captured from

3445-449: The streets were carrying weapons. Roads were destroyed to make barricades, holes in walls between buildings were created to allow YPS members to move from place to place to be undetected and tunnels were dug. On March 13, 2016, the Turkish army surrounded Nusaybin with tanks in an attempt to drive out resistance fighters. The fight between the YPS and Turkey did not seem to have an end in sight when it came to Nusaybin. This eventually led to

3510-402: The streets without fear of being killed. In instances, women are leaving their homes to go in search for food for their families only to be used as targets for snipers, regardless or not if they are waving a white flag showing they mean no harm and are no threat. The Turkish Government also acknowledged that they do not support or recognize gender equality and the struggles that women face during

3575-577: The territory under embargo, referring to the fact that the other border crossings with Iraq led to areas controlled by the Kurdistan Regional Government , while al-Yaarubiyah led to areas controlled by the Iraqi central government. In 2014, the Syriac Military Council , a group of Assyrian units, was formally integrated into the YPG's command structure. The inter-rebel conflict during the Syrian Civil War led to open war between

3640-465: The two groups who attacked each other with sticks, stones and knives. Government security forces entered the city to quell the riot, firing at the crowds. The riots resulted in around 36 dead, most of them Kurds. They did not, however, emerge as a significant force until the Syrian civil war erupted in 2011. The self-defence committees that were to become the YPG were formed in July and August 2011 as

3705-402: The war effort. In 2016–2017, the SDF's Raqqa campaign led to the liberation of the city of Raqqa , the Islamic State's de facto capital. Several western sources have described the YPG as the "most effective" force in fighting IS in Syria. According to Turkey and Qatar, the YPG is a terrorist organization, closely associated with the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), which is listed as

3770-409: The war efforts, since many issues regarding women are put on the back burner even inside their own resistance movements due to the male dominance. The YPS-Jin fights along with the YPS, however, they just have more of a focus on women's issues than the YPS.The Civil Protection Units-Women or Civil Defense Units-Women ( Kurdish : Yekîneyên Parastina Sivîl a Jin , YPS-Jin ) is a Kurdish militia that

3835-558: The world fearing another massacre in Kobanî, American support increased substantially. The US gave intense close air support to the YPG, and in doing so, started military cooperation with one of the factions. While it expected that IS would quickly crush the YPG and the FSA, this alliance was not considered a problem for the US. The YPG won the battle in early 2015. Meanwhile, the situation had been stable in Afrin and Aleppo. The fight between

3900-555: Was captured on 26 December. Participating forces included the YPG, the FSA group Army of Revolutionaries , the tribal group al-Sanadid Forces and the Assyrian Syriac Military Council . The coalition had some heavy weapons and was supported by intense US led airstrikes. The capture of the hydroelectric dam also had positive effects on the economy of Rojava . In February, the YPG-led SDF launched

3965-426: Was defeated as a conventional military force. Even so, there was little doubt that their most likely future application would be against a NATO member ( Turkey ). Aside from a large fleet of Humvees , IAG Guardians , and M1224 Maxxpros , the US has reportedly transferred a number of M2 Bradley infantry fighting vehicles (IFVs) to the YPG. These reports appear to be based on the sighting of M2s with SDF flags and

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4030-725: Was killed in a firefight with the Turkish Army. Since she and the others were labeled as terrorists by Turkey, Turkey did not show any sense of compassion for them. In the instance of this case, the government allowed the families to enter the districts where their children are lying dead, however, they make it nearly impossible for the families to bury their children. YPG Iraqi Civil War Nalîn Dêrik Sozdar Dêrik Serhildan Garisî Foreign intervention in behalf of Syrian rebels U.S.-led intervention against ISIL 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 The People's Defense Units ( YPG ), also called People's Protection Units ,

4095-403: Was set up in 2016 as the female brigade of the YPS ( Yekîneyên Parastina Sivîl , YPS) militia. Jin meaning woman in Kurdish, the main purpose of the YPS-Jin is to fight for women's liberation and freedom alongside the fight for Kurdish freedom. In 2016, YPS-Jin became established in Yüksekova , formerly known as Gever to fight against the Turkish forces in the area. This is because the residents in

4160-474: Was the Turkish State's desire to turn Sur into a tourist destination, which would begin with making it financially impossible for locals to live there. The fighting and oppression on the civilians only increased from here. After a failed cease-fire in 2015, Turkish police reinstated curfews in many district across Turkey, this led people flee to Sur, since it is newly established without a curfew. This made

4225-480: Was trained for urban guerrilla warfare tactics. Before the creation of YDG-H there were very little resistance forces that were actively fighting within city limits, which led to the creation of the YDG-H. In the past, youths were afraid of the Turkish State, however, now they have joined the fight against them. The ages of the YDG-H ranged from 15 to 25 years old, making them more radicalized and less likely for an open dialogue between them and Turkey. A popular quote from

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