Connor Hayes speaks with Steve Sweeney, International Editor for the Morning Star newspaper, about his recent travels in South Kurdistan, an overview of what’s been happening on the ground during Turkey’s invasion of South Kurdistan and the popular protests against the KRG, as well as his reporting on Turkey’s usage of chemical weapons, and the propaganda war being waged by regional and global media against the PKK.

Steve Sweeney is a multimedia journalist, writer and political activist. He is a member of the National Union of Journalists, and the International Editor for the Morning Star newspaper writing on labour and progressive issues with an interest in Turkey, Kurdistan and the Middle East along with Latin America and global liberation movements. Steve has travelled extensively in Turkey and Kurdistan, including to observe political trials of journalists and politicians, particularly those from the Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP). He is the co-editor of the Kurdistan Media Project along with Marcel Cartier, and in May 2019 he founded Journalists for Democracy in Turkey and Kurdistan with the award-winning Kurdish artist Zehra Dogan.

Connor Hayes is an activist, researcher, and a student of philosophy. He was a member of the 2019 International Peace Delegation to Imrali.

This interview was sponsored by the Peace in Kurdistan Campaign and the Campaign Against Criminalising Communities.