The stances recently taken by the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) in West, East and South Kurdistan point to a change, whether tactical or not, in PKK policy. One could say it is a turning from Russia and Assad towards the US.
The operations conducted by the Hashd al-Shaabi forces in south Shingal show that the PKK vacated some places there which were taken by the Hashd forces. On the other hand the PKK said they would prevent the Hashd forces from crossing over into Syrian territory.
This is at a time when the Kurdistan Region, Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi’s government and coalition forces have demanded that the PKK leave Shingal, but the group is still defying these requests. The question is: Why can’t or do the PKK not want to leave the territory controlled by the Peshmerga, but voluntarily leaves areas under Hashd al-Shaabi control.
The PKK was fighting against the Peshmerga of East Kurdistan on the borders trying to expel them two years ago. Yet, they recently clashed with Iranian forces and even published photos of guerrillas killed in the battle.
The Democratic Union Party in Syria (PYD) Asayish in Qamishli has circulated footage of a meeting in which “an Iranian and Syrian plot against West Kurdistan” is discussed. The Russian foreign minister has accused the SDF (an acronym for the Syrian Democratic Forces), which is under the influence of the PKK, of allowing ISIS militants to appear in Raqqa.
The US administration has publicly announced arms deliveries have now reached the Peoples’ Protection Units in Syria (YPG) which Washington knows is an extension of the PKK.
A Shingal Protection Units (YBS) commander in Shingal, a group affiliated with the PKK, has revealed that they voluntarily handed over some Yezidi places to the Hashd al-Shaabi. Another commander from the same group in Shingal has said its presence in Shingal has been the reason why the Hashd forces haven’t been able to cross into Syrian or Rojava territory.
The Turkish Prime Minister has said the United States has informed them of the details of the Raqqa operation which is being carried out by the SDF.
It is likely that the PKK has decided to distance itself from the PYD, YPG and SDF as a tactical matter, allowing the US to create its own area in Syria. This will benefit both the PKK and the US. It will also reduce Turkey’s concerns over Rojava. This will prevent PKK accomplishments in Rojava from being manipulated by Damascus, Tehran and Moscow once ISIS is defeated.
This same tactical thinking might explain why the PKK in Shingal might be trying to show the US that it can prevent further expansion of the Hashd al-Shaabi which has concerned both the US and Turkey. It’s likely the PKK is aligning itself with the US and turning its back on Russia, the Assad regime and Iran.
But the PKK still doesn’t want to have any confrontations with the Hashd al-Shaabi which unlike the Peshmerga will not, due to having the same national identity, hesitate to eject a non-Iraqi force from the territory they control.
On the other hand, the PKK’s battle to expand its fan base in the region is with the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP), not with the Hashd al-Shaabi. This might explain why handing over some villages to the Hashd al-Shaabi is less detrimental to the PKK than handing over large territories to the Peshmerga.
The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the position of Rudaw.
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