Novara Live: Iran Blames U.S and Israel for Fall of Assad
Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei has spoken publicly for the first time since the fall of his ally, Bashar al-Assad. With Michael Walker and Helena NoJustice(MTG)
Tag: Syria
Opinion: With All Eyes on Palestine, Don’t Forget Rojava
Dani Ellis
In early October, a major western ally began an air campaign against a small Middle Eastern territory unlike anything experienced in the region’s decades-long liberation struggle. This wasn't Israel’s assault on Gaza, but Turkey’s on Rojava.
Opinion: 100 Children Were Trapped on a Sinking Ship and the Greek Coastguard Did Nothing for Hours. As a Firefighter, I’m Disgusted
Brendan Woodhouse
When on Monday a migrant boat began to sink in the Ionian Sea, the Greek coastguard did nothing – in fact, there's evidence they may have caused the deadly shipwreck. They’re a stain on rescue services, writes firefighter Brendan Woodhouse.
Analysis: Unfinished Revolutions: How Syria’s Uprising Turned Into a War
David Wearing
Ten years ago this week the Arab uprisings arrived in Syria, with large demonstrations marking the culmination of weeks of brewing unrest. In the fifth piece of his series on the uprisings, David Wearing looks at how the attempted revolution in Syria became a full-blown war.
Opinion: The Biden Administration Just Broke International Law. Why Doesn’t Anyone Care?
Aaron Bastani
By authorising airstrikes on Syria without congressional approval, Biden is mimicking Trump’s foreign policy. Leading Democrats criticised the president then, notes Aaron Bastani – so why not now?
Report: The UK is Rushing to Deport Asylum Seekers Before Brexit, New Data Shows
Rivkah Brown
Exclusive: The UK is rushing to return asylum seekers to the EU before Brexit makes it harder to do so. Data obtained by Novara Media shows the UK made up to 154% more transfer requests to Germany, Switzerland, Spain, Ireland and Denmark this year, an uptick lawyers say has resulted in a catalogue of harmful and unlawful failings. Rivkah Brown reports.
Opinion: Russia Report: Explaining Moscow’s Actions Would Expose the West’s Hypocrisy
David Wearing
Moscow’s actions bear more than a passing resemblance to those of the UK and its allies. To admit this is not to excuse Russia, writes David Wearing; it is the first step in formulating a response to today’s political challenges that really does serve the needs of international security.
International: Coronavirus in Rojava: Facing a Pandemic Without a State
Thomas McClure
In North and East Syria, 4m people are reliant on a total capacity of just 40 ventilators and 35 ICU beds. With UN aid practically severed, the autonomous administration is forced to rely on its war-tested ideals as its best hope of keeping the population alive through the pandemic crisis.
International: North and East Syria’s Political Experiment Continues Despite Its Challenges
Nina Steinhardt
Confronted with Turkish occupation forces and now coronavirus, the democratic project in North and East Syria is still proving its resilience in civil society, writes Nina Steinhardt.
British Solidarity With Rojava Must Start at Home, With an End to the Hostile Environment
Fanny Malinen
European states won't challenge Erdogan's attack on Rojava because of the power Turkey has as the EU's south-eastern border wall. To show solidarity with the Kurdish-led democracy revolution, we need to challenge the hostile environment at home, argues Fanny Malinen.
Interview: Update From Rojava | Interview With Dani Ellis
Dani Ellis is a volunteer and engineer currently based in Rojava. Following up their conversation a few weeks ago, James spoke to Dani about Turkey’s ‘military pause’, the geopolitical games of Turkey, Syria, Russia and the US, resistance and what this spells for the future of Rojava.
Ash Wednesday: Ash Sarkar Meets Jeremy Corbyn
Ash Sarkar met up with Jeremy Corbyn to talk about his political journey, the movement in power, and whether or not he really killed a rabbit with a pogo stick.
Western Governments May Have Abandoned the Kurds but Let’s Not Abandon Hope and Solidarity
Chris Strafford
Abandoned by the West, Kurdish-led democratic forces in Syria have been left with a choice between ethnic cleansing at the hands of the Turkish state or compromising their independence by reaching an agreement with Damascus. Chris Strafford argues this is not the time for allies in the UK to abandon hope or solidarity.
Explainers: Rise up for Rojava
This week the Turkish armed forces launched an incursion into northern Syria with the intention of crushing the YPG and the autonomous region known as Rojava. In this video Elif Sarican outlines the reasons why we in the UK should care.
Interview: No Friends but the Mountains | Interview With a Rojava Volunteer
James Butler spoke to Dani Ellis, a volunteer and engineer currently based in Rojava, about the situation now, as Turkey conducts shelling ahead of a full invasion. They discuss the nature of the resistance – and what people in the UK can do in solidarity.
Interview: A New Society in the Shell of the Old | James Butler Meets Debbie Bookchin
Debbie Bookchin’s father’s ideas inspired a Kurdish project based on ecology, non hierarchy, women’s liberation and grassroots democracy. At The World Transformed in September James Butler sat down with Debbie to discuss her father’s ideas, the revolution in Rojava they inspired and more. This interview was recorded before recent events in which the US has […]
Novara Live: Rojava: Trump Betrays the Kurds
As Trump gives the green light for a Turkish invasion of Rojava, we ask David Graeber what hope there is left for Syrian Kurds. Plus, the latest on Extinction Rebellion’s Autumn Uprising with Aaron Bastani.
Erdogan Wants a ‘Buffer Zone’ Along the Syria Border – but It’s Turkish Forces Killing Civilians
Robin Fleming
Turkish forces have killed 27 civilians in north-eastern Syria in cross-border attacks this year alone, with just one attack going the other way. Yet Turkey is using the narrative that it must protect itself from a “terror corridor” to move its troops into Rojava.