KURDWATCH, May 17, 2012—On March 27, 2012, the members of the Kurdish National Council (formerly the Kurdish Patriotic Conference) as well as other Kurdish delegates at an oppositional conference in Istanbul walked out in protest against the Syrian National Council's stance on the Kurdish question [further information]. Following this, the Syrian National Council reformulated its position on the Kurdish question on March 31, 2012. KurdWatch has released the text.

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KURDWATCH, 16. May 2012—Nationwide protests on 11. May 2012 resulted again in numerous dead and injured. Throughout the country, demonstrators demanded the fall of the regime. Once again protests in the Kurdish regions this week did not take place under a united slogan. Only a few demonstrators joined the all-Syrian slogan »God's support and a speedy victory«. An activist told KurdWatch, »Our revolution is committed to freedom and dignity. We no longer have sympathy for the fact that so many of the slogans that are designated as the main slogans have an Islamic context«. Most of the demonstrators chose their own slogan; for example, supporters of the Democratic Union Party took to the streets under the slogan »Support for the Kurds in Aleppo«.
The atmosphere in al‑Qamishli was tense after the PYD attacked other demonstrators in the district of al‑Hilaliyah last Friday. This week three different protests departed from the demonstrators' central meeting point at the Qasimo mosque: The PYD organized a central demonstration, in which supporters from various Kurdish regions took part. The Kurdish National Council also called for a central demonstration, however, only a few thousand people participated. In addition, several hundred supporters of the Union of Democratic Forces in Syria protested. Further protests took place in the districts of al‑ʿAntariyah, Qudurbak, and Qanat Suwais. In Qudurbak security forces attacked the protesters and the demonstration was quickly dispersed. In ʿAmudah there were three separate demonstrations, organized by the PYD, the Kurdish National Council, and by various youth groups, including Avahî. In al‑Hasakah there were four demonstrations. One central protest march took place in each of the cities of al‑Malikiyah (Dêrik), al‑Qahtaniyah (Tirbesipî), al‑Maʿbada (Girkê Legê), al‑Jawadiyah (Çil Axa), Raʾs al‑ʿAyn (Serê Kaniyê), ad‑Darbasiyah, and ʿAyn al‑ʿArab (Kobanî), as well as in the majority Kurdish districts of Shaikh Maqsud in Aleppo and Ruknuddin and Wadi al‑Mashariʿ (Zorava) in Damascus. Overall the number of demonstrators in the Kurdish regions is currently in decline.

KURDWATCH, May 14, 2012—Hasan ʿAbdulʿazim, chairman of the National Union of the Forces for Democratic Change, commented on the Kurdish question in an interview on May 7, 2012 in the chat room »Resistance from Western Kurdistan«. He explained that while there are Kurds in Syria, there is neither a Syrian-Kurdistan nor a region predominantly settled by Kurds. According to ʿAbdulʿazim, even in al‑Hasakah province, the proportion of Kurds is only between 33 and 35 percent; Arab residents are in the majority. Moreover, he rejected all forms of political decentralization. Instead, the National Union, together with the Democratic Union Party (PYD) and in consultation with ten other Kurdish parties, supports the right to administrative decentralization based on the currently existing model of local administrations. At the same time ʿAbdulʿazim emphasized that he would not stand against more extensive Kurdish demands if the majority of the Syrian people were to accept them in a democratic election. In reaction to ʿAbdulʿazim's comments, the PYD chairman, Salih Muslim Muhammad, communicated in a press release that his party's use of the term West Kurdistan is not intended to convey that this region does not or should not belong to Syria.

KURDWATCH, May 13, 2012—During a demonstration in ʿAmudah on May 9, 2012, conflicts arose between supporters of the Kurdish Democratic Union Party in Syria (Democratic Yekîtî) and supporters of the Kurdish Union Party in Syria (Yekîtî). While Yekîtî supporters wanted to display a banner calling for federalism, supporters of the Democratic Yekîtî declined to do this, explaining that the Kurdish National Council had spoken out against this demand. Several people from both parties were injured. A Yekîtî activist told KurdWatch that the atmosphere between supporters of both parties had been tense for weeks.

KURDWATCH, May 10, 2012—On April 27, 2012, the Air Force Intelligence Service released Muhammad Jan Muhammad Saʿid (b. 1991), an activist for the Movement of Young Kurds (Tevgera Ciwanên Kurd), from the custody. Two days earlier he had been arrested near the bus station in al‑Hasakah. He was on his way to a preparatory meeting for the »Day of the Kurdish Journalist«. Saʿid was initially brought to the Air Force Intelligence Service in al‑Hasakah with his hands and feet shackled and his eyes bound. There he was made to undress and was beaten with a whip on his back and legs until one of the torturers told his accomplice not to use the whip any longer because it would leave marks. Saʿid was questioned about his participation in dissident demonstrations as well as about articles that he had published online. Security forces further reproached him, claiming that the Kurds had always been against the regime, that they wanted to destroy Syria, were controlled from abroad, and received weapons and money from Europeans, Americans, and Turks. Threats were also made that the detainee would »never see the sun again«. In the early evening, Saʿid was brought to the Air Force Intelligence Service's quarters in al‑Qamishli, where he was also interrogated, beaten, and insulted. On the second day of his detention, the torture was less, but Saʿid's hands and feet were still shackled and his eyes remained bound through his entire time in custody. He was not given any food and only received a glass of water after protesting loudly. On the morning of April 27, Saʿid was left near the al‑Qamishli airport with his eyes still bound. Prior to this he was forced to sign a statement that he would no longer take part in dissident demonstrations. His money—a total of 3 500 Syrian liras—was gone and his cell phone was destroyed. The detainee was freed after his friends protested for his release on the evening of April 26, 2012 in ʿAmudah and ad‑Darbasiyah. A delegation of doctors and lawyers had threatened the district manager of ad‑Darbasiyah that demonstrators would set his office on fire if Saʿid was not freed by the following day. Thereupon the district manager agreed that Saʿid would be released by 11 o'clock the following morning. According to Saʿid, activists are repeatedly being arrested and released a few days later, following comparable protests.

KURDWATCH, May 10, 2012—Kurdish parties, activists, and youth groups called for a boycott of the Syrian parliamentary elections on May 7, 2012. The Kurdish National Council announced this decision in a press release on May 5, 2012 and called on its supporters to take part in rallies and demonstrations to condemn the circumstances under which the elections are taking place. »It cannot be that elections are being carried out while at the same time in many locations in our country, civilians are being shot at with heavy artillery«, ʿUmar Kalo, a member of the Kurdish National Council's media office, explained to KurdWatch. The Union of Kurdish Democratic Forces in Syria, the Kurdish Future Movement, and the Democratic Union Party (PYD) also called for a boycott of the elections.

KURDWATCH, May 10, 2012—Nationwide protests on May 4, 2012 resulted again in numerous dead and injured. Throughout the country, demonstrators demanded the fall of the regime. This week protests in the Kurdish regions took place under two slogans: The all-Syrian slogan was »Our constancy is our salvation«; in contrast, activists from the ranks of the Kurdish National Council (formerly the Kurdish Patriotic Conference) as well as supporters of the Democratic Union Party (PYD) took to the streets under the slogan »Zorava is not alone«. A total of five demonstrations took place in al‑Qamishli: in the districts of al‑Hilaliyah, al‑ʿAntariyah, Qudurbak, Qanat Suwais, and Kurnish. Security forces prevented a demonstration in the majority Arab district of Tay. During the demonstration in al‑Hilaliyah, PYD supporters attacked members of the Union of Kurdish Democratic Forces in Syria. Several people were injured, including ʿAbdussamad ʿUmar, one of the Union's leading politicians. In ʿAmudah, there were three separate demonstrations organized by the Democratic Union Party (PYD), the Kurdish National Council, and by various youth groups, including Avahî. In al‑Hasakah there were four demonstrations. One central protest march took place in each of the cities of al‑Malikiyah (Dêrik), al‑Qahtaniyah (Tirbesipî), al‑Jawadiyah (Çil Axa), Raʾs al‑ʿAyn (Serê Kaniyê), ad‑Darbasiyah, and ʿAyn al‑ʿArab (Kobanî), as well as in the majority Kurdish districts of Shaikh Maqsud in Aleppo and Ruknuddin and Wadi al‑Mashariʿ (Zorava) in Damascus.

KURDWATCH, May 9, 2012—On May 2, 2012, security forces with billy clubs attacked a demonstration of Democratic Union Party (PYD) supporters in Zorava, a majority Kurdish district of Damascus. ʿUthman Hamu and Mahmud ʿAbdurrahman Hasan (b. 1985 in al‑Malikiyah) were arrested in the process. In reaction, PYD supporters called for further demonstrations. In al‑Qamishli, al‑Malikiyah (Dêrik), and ʿAfrin, as well as in Zorava itself, protests took place on May 2 and 3 under the slogan »Zorava is not alone«.

KURDWATCH, May 7, 2012—Early on the morning of May 3, 2012, security forces stormed several dormitories in Aleppo. At least 150 people are said to have been arrested, among them the Kurdish math student Ibrahim Sabri Hasan. According to eyewitness reports, shots were heard on the university campus. At least five students were allegedly killed. In addition, numerous students were injured as they tried to flee; there were many broken bones as students jumped from upper floors. In fear of further attacks by security forces, dozens of students spent the night outdoors. The university announced on its website on May 3 that all courses until exams on May 13 have been cancelled. The university campus and the dorms, which accommodate up to 18 000 students, have been closed. While the people of Aleppo have hardly participated in dissident demonstrations thus far, rallies have repeatedly taken place at the university, which is attended by students from all over Syria.

KURDWATCH, May 6, 2012—On April 19, 2012, the recruit Sipan Muhammad ʿAli Ose (b. 1992 in al‑Malikiyah) disappeared in Rastan, thirty kilometers north of Homs. Ose had wanted to take the bus from Homs to spend a short break with relatives; however, he was not registered as a passenger at the bus station.

KURDWATCH, May 4, 2012—On April 25, 2012, the student and activist Jigarkhwin ʿAbdurrazzaq Mula Ahmad (b. 1985 in al‑Qamishli), who was arrested on March 3, 2012 [further information on the case], was transferred to Aleppo's central prison. Two relatives were allowed to visit him there for half an hour. Prior to his transfer, Mula Ahmad was held and tortured in the Political Security Directorate's remand prison in Damascus. The hearing scheduled on April 28, 2012 before the military court in Aleppo did not take place; a new date has not yet been set. A relative of the detainee told KurdWatch, »Jigarkhwin is currently being held in a civil prison. Therefore we hope that his file will be handed over to a civil court.«