25 January 2026: In Leicester today, Kurds held a demonstration in support of Kurds in Rojava/Syria who are facing massacres and potentially genocide at the hands of the Transitional Government and its allies including Turkey. There were speeches and chanting outside the BBC, on Jubilee Square, and then the gathering moved down to the Clock Tower for more speeches. Kurds from all the parts of Kurdistan were there.
I was asked to speak and gave highlights from the document prepared earlier with the help of Khalaf Dahowd
Kurds are under attack from the Syrian Transitional Government. I spoke to my friend who lives in Qamishlo in north-eastern Syria. Below are the key points he raises, together with my concerns, and references for what he is saying:
Kurds are facing ethnic cleansing and atrocities at the hands of the Syrian Transitional Government and their allies including jihadist groups from whence the Government members sprang, also supported by Turkey which takes every opportunity to attack the Kurds in the hope of clearing them from the border area.
The Kurds believe that a genocide is coming, and they call on the international community, including the UK Government to intervene to support them at this time of great danger.
I understand that Mazloom Abdi who leads the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces was backed into a corner, and forced into an agreement with the Transitional Government believing that the alternative was all-out war, however once the agreement had been made, the Transitional Government broke it with brutal attacks on the Kurds. The ceasefire was extended on 24 January 2026 at 8pm, for a further 15 days but there is no trust left now.
The UK Government has made a statement of deep concern about the situation particularly in Kobani, but it makes no mention of Kurds:
UK for Syria https://www.facebook.com/UKforSyria/ 22 January at 18:20
Statement of the United Kingdom Office for Syria on the humanitarian situation in Northeast Syria
We are deeply concerned about the deteriorating humanitarian situation in northeast Syria, including in Kobani.
Full commitment to ceasefire and protect all civilians and civil infrastructure is imperative. We call for the swift, safe and unhindered humanitarian aid to those in need, and for the creation of humanitarian corridors to facilitate this and for the evacuation of civilians who wish to leave. Health facilities, ambulances and first responder teams must be respected and protected. All parties should work to restore essential services, especially water and electricity, as soon as possible.
We continue to urge all parties to respect International Humanitarian Law and the principles of International Human Rights Law, where applicable. Those who did not participate or have stopped participating in hostile acts, including the wounded and the sick, must be protected.
The UK is providing life-saving humanitarian aid to those affected by violence in Aleppo and northeast Syria, in the safe areas. So far, the UK has allocated £2.54 million to support medical teams, providing shelter, relief supplies, fuel, winter supplies and cash aid.
Our medical partner provides support to medical facilities in affected areas, including hospitals and clinics. In addition to mobile medical teams to support the displaced from the delicate, class and Deir Al-Zour.
Kurds are facing attacks from the Jihadist Syrian Government – the historic ideology and political leanings of the leading figures of the Transitional Government has been well documented, however they have been embraced by the UK and other Governmental powers on the basis that they may be able to pull the country round. Now that they are showing their true colours, instead of questioning that trust, the international community is backing away from protecting the Kurds.
The ways of ISIS is being seen, where they threaten the Kurds and any allies, there have been many killings, and they humiliate people such as we have seen before. People are very afraid, although this week when the plait of a female Kurdish fighter was paraded in the media Kurdish women showed their courage by making the braided plait a symbol of defiance.
The Kurds are attempting to keep their autonomy but they face a powerful and well-resourced force.
If they are swept up by the Transitional Government, they will be forced to accept the Transitional Government’s ideology in order to survive, and then an even stronger base will be created for ISIS in the Middle East. The flag of ISIS is already there in Raqqa, and ISIS prisoners who have been held by the Kurds on behalf of the international community have been freed.
Is this what the international community wants?
Kurds need international protection. Arabs who joined the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces in the north east of Syria are leaving because of fear of reprisals from the Transitional Government if they are seen to support the Kurds, and this weakens the SDF. America has used the Kurds to fight ISIS, but Donald Trump has announced that they are now backing off saying they would side with the Transitional Government if pushed to make a choice.
From Kurdistan24.net:
Trump Backs Syria’s President as U.S. Signals End of Partnership With SDF
President Trump backed Syria’s new leader amid an anti-Kurd offensive, while the U.S. declared the SDF era over, urging integration into the state as a ceasefire and transition deal takes shape.
Kurds need humanitarian assistance – everyone is abandoning them to their fate whilst in some areas they are being starved of basic needs – see Saturday’s report from the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights: Food shortages, loss of basic services and ongoing siege | Humanitarian catastrophe threatens civilians’ live in Kobani
- Humanitarian and international organizations are urgently called upon to act before the crisis turns into a full-scale catastrophe, as children and civilians continue to pay the price for international silence and political indifference.
Residents of Kobani city in northern Syria live an unprecedented humanitarian tragedy amid the continued suffocating siege imposed by the caretaker government forces. The city is facing a severe shortage of basic services, while the risks to civilian lives, especially children, are steadily increasing.
Hospitals are on the brink of collapse. Medical incubators have ceased operating and oxygen cylinders have been depleted, making it nearly impossible to save children in urgent need of care. Doctors and nurses describe the situation as a “living hell,” as medical staff struggle to provide even the most basic forms of treatment, while residents watch their children die before their eyes with no solution in sight.
The impact of the siege is not limited to the healthcare sector; it also includes acute shortages of food and essential supplies. Roads leading to the city are closed to food and fuel trucks, forcing residents to collect snow and melt it to secure drinking water. Children, in particular, are suffering from severe malnutrition and a lack of infant formula, amid freezing temperatures that further compound their suffering.
The city is also experiencing an almost complete blackout of electricity, internet and essential services, cutting residents off from the outside world and preventing communication or calls for help. The health and humanitarian crisis is rapidly worsening as the 11th anniversary of the city’s liberation approaches, where residents are trapped in conditions reminiscent of the darkest days of war, this time without international support or hope for civilian rescue.
Humanitarian and international organizations are urgently called upon to act before the crisis turns into a full-scale catastrophe, as children and civilians continue to pay the price for international silence and political indifference.
https://www.syriahr.com/en/376794
The media is absent, and so there is no independent witnessing and reporting from the area to bring home to the international community the tragedy of what is happening.
Kurds have been deserted in their time of need, and they call on the international community to support them, to stop the coming massacre and potential genocide of Kurds taking place in Syria, to bring in humanitarian aid, and to witness what is taking place.
To finish, it is heartwarming to see that Kurds from all parts of Kurdistan are coming together at this time of crisis, to show their support for their brothers and sisters. Thank you.