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Syrian Kurds, a potential danger for Assad
21.1.2006
by Bashdar Pusho Ismaeel -Jan 18
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Marginalized and the target of repression for
more than 40 years, the 2.5 million Kurds living in
Syria are a potential resource for the U.S. in its
struggle against the Assad regime.
Damascus, (AsiaNews) – Marginalized for over
40 years, when not the actual target of violence and
killings, by the Baathist regime of the Assad,
father and son, to a great extent ignored by
international public opinion, but now, in the wake
of developments in northern Iraq, the 2.5 million
Syrian Kurds could become an important wire for the
U.S. to pull in its plans for the Middle East.
Syrian Kurds make up some 10% of the population, and
many of them are considered stateless and have no
access to ordinary state services; the areas in
which they live have undergone a long process of
impoverishment and have recently witnessed
well-documented uprisings, ethnic violence and pro-U.S.
demonstrations, which have garnered international
media attention.
Most notably, rioting broke out in Qamishli in March
2004 which left at least a dozen people dead,
hundreds more arrested and mass looting, culminating
in a tense atmosphere in the region, which has been
further compounded by the murder of cleric Maashouq
al-Haznawi, in Aleppo last June, which instigated
further rioting and violence.
But still today, as a result of Law 93 of 1962, some
300,000 Kurds, classified as foreigners, still have
no access to state health, education, and other
services and are unable to travel. Ever fearful of
cross border influence from Kurds in Iraq and
Turkey, Syria sought to create an “Arab Belt”, but
failed given the newfound political power of Iraqi
Kurds.
Now, under international pressure from the U.N.
resolution for an international inquiry into the
death of Lebanon’s former prime minister, Rafic
Hariri, and the newfound unity of Syrian opposition
groups, the Kurds could prove to be more useful to
the U.S. than a great military arsenal in its quest
to oust the current regime.
www.asianews.it
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