KCK Executive Council Member Cemil Bayık has written about “consistency in the fight against ISIS” for his column on Yeni Özgür Politika and Azadiya Welat dailies.

The Kurdish article has been translated by ANF English service below.

“It has been seen once again that the Turkish state wants to protect ISIS and Al-Nusra. The Turkish state shot down the Russian plane not due to a violation of airspace, but to hinder Russian airstrikes against the Turkey-backed gang groups. By doing this, Turkey has not only encouraged the gangs to resist, but also intended to make NATO and Russia confront each other through a provocation, hinder a joint action by the U.S. and Russia for the building of a new Syria, and relieve the ISIS.

Turkey's support to ISIS was expressed by the US Secretary of State John Kerry himself, who said 75 percent of the entire border has now been shut off, and they are entering an operation with the Turks to shut off the other remaining 98 km. Could there ever be another evidence exposing the cooperation between Turkey and ISIS so clearly? Turkey is already uttering threats against the seizure of control of Jarablus by Rojava Revolutionaries, and conducting artillery attacks against Kobanê, which both reveal its protection of Jarablus, in other words the ISIS.

Jarablus is an area that constitutes a threat of attack to Kurds. During the Kobanê siege, gangs carried out attacks from this area with the support of the Turkish state. Separate attacks on Kobanê were also launched from Gırê Sipî (Tal Abyad) in the same way. YPG has cleared Tal Abyad of ISIS which however still remains in Jarablus, threatening and attacking Kobanê on daily basis.

on 25 June, ISIS groups infiltrated into Kobanê from three locations, two of which moved from Jarablus and Turkey side, and massacred some 300 civilians, all of whom were unarmed and defenseless. They raided houses and killed every single one inside, women and children all alike. This massacre was an unprecedented crime against humanity witnessed in human history. This mass killing was perpetrated with the support of the Turkish state after the siege was broken and ISIS was defeated in Kobanê. Any society or state would immediately respond to the perpetrators and aim at eliminating the centre of this threat. In an attempt to avoid an offensive against Jarablus, the Turkish state then threatened to hit Kobanê Revolutionaries in the event of their crossing to the western side of the Euphrates. In this way, Turkey both protected ISIS and revealed its complicity in the unprecedented mass killing of 300 civilians. What attitude would the Turkish state adopt if it itself was targeted by such a massacre? It would probably order an immediate offensive and seizure of Jarablus. Yet, when it comes to Kurds, it shielded itself to avoid a punishment of the murderers of Kurds.

ISIS and the powers behind it must necessarily give an account of the massacre of 300 civilians, and the perpetrators of this inhumane crime must be tried at the International Criminal Court of Hague. It is worth noting that this bloodcurdling massacre wasn't covered by the world media widely despite the fact that it claimed lives as many as the total number of Amed, Suruç, Ankara, Lebanon and Paris mass killings. While this massacre alone was a reason to end ISIS, the Turkish state threatened the YPG against entering Jarablus. Could there ever be a clearer support for ISIS? Don't the US, France and the whole anti-ISIS coalition see this reality? If YPG and allied Arab forces had entered Jarablus after this massacre, Paris attacks wouldn't have occurred, and even Raqqa would have fallen by now. Yet, no attitude was adopted against these threats of Turkey, nor to stop Turkey being an obstacle in the fight against ISIS. The Kurdish forces in Rojava weren't given an opportunity to advance upon ISIS in Jarablus and other areas in spite of the fact that Kobanê's Revolutionary Forces and Raqqa's Arab Revolutionary Forces had attained a right to take Jarablus after the mass killing of 300 civilians.

In the same way it attacked on Kobanê over Raqqa, ISIS is now attacking on Efrîn over Jarablus, and it is being joined by Al-Nusra and Ahrar Al-Sham in these assaults. They may not have a joint command or direct coordination but attacks are being conducted by these groups all together. Under the circumstances, do the people of Efrîn have the right to fight ISIS, Al-Nusra and Ahrar Al-Sham? Of course, they have. While Turkey continues defending gang groups under the name of Bayır Bucak Turkmens, do the people of Rojava Kurdistan have no right to respond to the attacks aimed at them?

It is not possible to understand international forces which claim to have established a coalition against ISIS but on the other hand take no stance against the Turkish state that provides the greatest support to these gang groups. Would the entire humanity, Paris people in the first place, not be right to ask what kind of a policy this is?

It is quite obvious that no consistent fight can be given against ISIS and no results can be obtained from this fight unless a clear attitude is taken against Turkey and the AKP government is brought to account. Besides, the AKP government has deserved to be punished time after time as an accomplice to the massacres committed by the ISIS and Al-Nusra groups it has long supported."