On Tuesday, the Kurdish YPG declared victory in the ISIS capital city of Raqqa, declaring the city to have been “liberated,” and leaving ISIS forces retreating further east, trying to set up defenses elsewhere.
It was a big victory that was a year in the making, but the future of Kurdish-held Raqqa could be an even more complex matter, as it leaves Kurdish officials and some very tiny Arab allies governing a major Arab-dominated city.
Placing their Arab allies into positions of visible power is likely, to try to tone down the impression of the city being Kurdish-occupied. Still, there’s no denying that many of these factions only allied with the YPG in the first place to try to get such positions in the end, and may be seen by locals who preferred ISIS rule as collaborators.
The capture of Raqqa also greatly complicates the YPG’s goal of federalization within Syria, as it puts even more territory under the control of their regional government, which is claiming autonomy within a future Syria. That autonomy may be a tough sell if the Kurdish region is both this large and includes this many non-Kurds.
the Kurd’s were sold out in Iraq and the same will happen in Syria.
30 to 40 million Kurds but they have no country . Iraq killed them , Turkey kills them . Syria treats Kurds OK . Why not weaken all those countries and help the Kurds just once . Lets create a Kurdstan for Kurds . There certainly is enough Kurds to make a country If Kosovo , Israel or Palestine could be a independent country .
If the Kurds want a Kurdistan, why should someone else create it for them? Let them create it themselves.
And what happened in Manbij? The problem however is the influential presence of Kurdish officials in Assad’s government. Oversized pressence. They have milked their support for Assad to the point of ridiculous. Assad must complain agains Turkey continuously even though without Turkey-Russia coordination in Al-Bab offensive Damascus would have fallen by now. Now same problem. Turkey is resdy to tackle Idlib in accordance with Asstana agreement. But because of Afrin Kurds, Damascus is in a bind. Russia is spending oversized amount of energy on soothing Aftin Kurds, Damascus Kurds, while having to put up with US-Kurdish alliance more or less shielding ISIS untill Kurds can move in and claim more Arab territory. Just placeholders. If Damascus is so weak to have to bow to Kurdish officials, Russia needs to find a way to overcome the knot that could reviving Al-Qaedain Idlib, making it much harder. It is hard enough with various Free Syia Army groups affiliated with Al-Qaeda attacking ones allied with Turkey. Al-Qaeda is still cause celebre in the Wesr, the White Helmets and deenders of Aleppo.
Fascinating how the corporate news completely shifts 180 degrees at times. In Catalonia, and in Kurdish Iraq, its considered horrible that people might want to split up a country in order to have their independence. But in Kurdish Syria, its considered good and proper that the US military go in and split off a part of the country.
Typical US. Its makes the so-called rules up as it goes along. And if roto-rueters says it, then it must be true and proper.
Fassinating how the fact that they delayed this attack for a long time to let ISIS get away and shift to guard the oil fields is now used as publicity in this capture…… ” a year in the making”. Sounds like Hollywood PR for a big-bust movie where they can’t find anything nice to say about it. And lets not mention that it took a year because the US was stalling and wanted to prop up ISIS for as long as they could.