'PKK militants will not withdraw from Sinjar'

The Kurdish organization aims at establishing Yazidis' autonomy
Tuesday, 10 January 2017 02:33

The Kurdistan Communities Union (KCK), a pro-Kurdish umbrella organization including the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) and the Democratic Union Party (PYD), stated that the PKK militants would not withdraw from Sinjar despite threats of military intervention from Turkey and Mesud Barzani’s regional government in Iraq. Ancient Yazidi city of Sinjar in Iraq’s northwestern Nineveh province had come to the fore of worldwide public opinion with Islamic State attack two years ago. 

PKK’s leader Murat Karayılan announced that the militants would withdraw from Sinjar while KCK stated that the PKK militants would stay in Sinjar until Yazidis establish an autonomous government in the northern Iraqi city.

Recently, Diplomatic Committee of KCK made a statement on January 9, 2017: “Everyone knows how the guerrilla entered Sinjar. They intervened ISIS in order to prevent the genocide of Yazidis.”

According to Rudaw, an Iraqi Kurdish media group, the statement is as below:

“It [the guerrilla force] defended Yazidis against ISIS attacks, and helped them to establish autonomy and self-defence in order to prevent further attacks against Yazidis. The guerrilla did not enter Sinjar for establishing domination. It does not have such a goal.

Therefore, the guerrilla does not have such a problem or agenda as withdrawal from Shingal. When Yazidis accomplish an autonomous government and self-defence, the mission of the guerrilla in intervening in Sinjar will be completed.”

Kurdistan Regional Government Spokesperson Sefin Dizayi recently told Rudaw that they had been positively responded by PKK about the guerrilla’s withdrawal from Sinjar, adding, “We will just negotiate over the withdrawal mechanism.”

“Our negotiations with the KDP’s political committee regarding the issue are continuing”, the KCK Diplomacy Committee said, and concluded: “The statement by Sefin Dizayi, ‘The guerrilla will withdraw from Sinjar’, does not reflect the reality. In this respect, neither PKK nor the guerrilla commanders have had such a statement.”

Murat Karayılan, one of the leaders of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party, stated that they would withdraw from Sinjar after the negotiations with Erbil are completed.