The Iron Fist Policy of President Erdogan's Turkey...

Omar Sindi | Exclusive to iKurd.net

It has become apparent so far in the unchangeable views of the world leaders’ tolerance of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s aggressive/transgressive policy in the Middle East and beyond, from Rojava Kurdistan in Northeastern Syria, to the Autonomous Region of Iraqi Kurdistan, to the Mediterranean Sea dispute over gas drilling rights with the Greek Government, Libya, and Somalia…

The perplexing issue is, had any other State or Government in the world committed as many transgressions (including the ethnic cleansing of Kurds in the Afrin Region and other parts of Syria) as the State of Turkey has done under Erdogan’s rule, there would have been worldwide condemnations, the United Nations (UN), would’ve imposed stiff international economic sanctions; as did happen in South Africa’s apartheid system, under the White minority government rule in 1980’s, as did also happen in the former Yugoslavia State under Slobodan Milosevic in the 1990’s, the UN imposed economic sanctions against him for war crimes, including his apprehension, trial, and subsequent imprisonment to the International Court of justice in Hague, Netherlands.

Currently, the UN has economic sanctions against Iran, which the Turkish government ignored embargo and traded with Iran. Iran has also had economic sanctions put on them by the UN because of their similar malicious acts in other countries’ affairs throughout the “Shia Crescent” and their ambitions of obtaining nuclear weapons.

The Turkish Government claims they are fighting against terrorism, this is a “bogus” statement, it’s nonsense. There is substantial evidence in the media outlets that the Turkish State supported the so-called ISIS terrorist organization’s fight in both Countries of Iraq and Syria. During the crux of ISIS, the Turkish border was a gateway for ISIS terrorists from Europe and other regions to go to Syria and Iraq. The Turkish state also purchased this terrorist organization’s oil…

So far, Turkey has not suffered internationally or regionally for this misguided policy. Turkey has not paid any price for the following actions, including gross human rights violations: Military expansion beyond the Turkish border, trying to reclaim territory that was once controlled by the Ottoman Empire, Assassinating individual(s) under banner of fighting terrorism, mass jailing people inside Turkey, environmental degradation, etc. Turkey built the “Ilisu Dam” on the Tigris River, which caused the forced relocation of many villages in the surrounding areas, including submerging the over 12,000 year old Kurdish city Hasankeyf, that was supposed to be a UNESCO World Heritage Site. This Dam caused ecological effects all the way to the Marshes in Southern Iraq.

In Afrin, Turkish backed Islamic terrorist organizations were cutting down olive trees, confiscating people’s properties. Turkey cut water supply to Northern Syria- Rojava Kurdistan. This is a medieval practice.

The so-called “Operation Claw-Eagle and Tiger ” military expansion into the Kurdish area in Iraq is still ongoing. This operation has cost so many innocent people’s lives. They are also engaging in mass deforestation-chopping down trees, then exporting logs into Turkey for industrial processing. German and British companies must stop exporting sophisticated drone technology to Turkey. These armed drones are flying over the area and are killing many innocent people, under the cover of fighting PKK Kurdish guerrillas.

The Christian village Sharansh, north east Zakho, Duhok province, Iraqi Kurdistan, 2020. Photo: Omar Sindi via Ekurd.net

After the demise of Saddam Hussein and his regime, the Christian village Sharansh north east of Zaxo, Iraq (pictured below) was revitalized. Now Erdogan’s forces have burned and bombed it into desertion again.

I recently read news about James F. Jeffrey, it showed that “Ambassador James Franklin Jeffrey currently serves as the Secretary‘s Special Representative for Syria Engagement and Special Envoy to the Global Coalition To Defeat ISIS. He is a senior American diplomat…”

It reminded me an analogy I once read: Once upon a time, a reporter asked a wife of a relatively a famous man (lets call them both Mr. & Mrs. XX), about her husband’s extra marital affair. She said, “my husband is a family man and very devoted man.”

Afterwards, that reporter did more research and found out that the husband was indeed having an affair. The reporter then found and asked the mistress, “aren’t you the girlfriend of Mr. XX?” She said yes, and then he asked why, because Mrs. XX told me that her husband is a devoted man! She replied, if Mrs. XX doesn’t know I’m his partner, then something must be wrong with her brain…

And so in the same way, if Ambassador Jeffrey and his associates, NATO, etc. don’t know that President Erdogan and his Turkish State have been a supporter of the Daesh “ISIS/ISIL” terrorist organization, then something is clearly very wrong. Now I’m not saying that something is wrong with Mr. Jeffrey’s mental ability, but perhaps the realpolitik is interfering with the task at hand, and he could also have aspirations to become a Turkish lobbyist in Washington D.C.

Turkey has ignored all international norms, are committing gross human rights violations, and have recently dispatched a faction of their Islamic terrorist abettors from Syria to fight in the Libyan civil war on the side of the Tripoli based Government. Turkey has also been covertly sending arms and ammunitions to the warring factions in Libya against the UN Security Council’s agreement. The policy that Turkish state has embarked on is dangerous for the entire region. The immutable US policy toward Turkey needs to be changed; it’s a strategic mistake to allow Turkey invade neighboring countries…

President Erdogan and his Turkish state are pursuing an Iron Fist Policy, and are becoming more powerful and more dangerous in the Middle East and beyond…

Omar Sindi, a senior writer, analyst and columnist for iKurd.net, Washington, United States.

The opinions are those of the writer and do not necessarily represent the views of iKurd.net or its editors.