The AKP/MHP regime's attacks on the Medya Defence Zones and Rojava, waves of arrests and reprisals against the people of Northern Kurdistan and Turkey have been increasing rapidly since the elections. In a statement on Tuesday, the Executive Committee of the PKK called for total resistance and warned against agents and collaborators, saying: "All our people and their friends, especially the youth and women, should be very attentive and not give agents a chance. We know that the struggle against the murderous attacks of fascism is inseparable from the struggle against betrayal by agents and collaborators. Therefore, it is important and necessary for all patriots and democrats to carry on this struggle effectively everywhere and in every place."

The statement of the Executive Committee of the PKK reads as follows:

The attacks are primarily aimed at Öcalan

"After the illegitimate elections, the fascist dictatorship of Tayyip Erdogan and his People's Alliance has restructured itself. As expected, it has increased its attacks, repression and terror supported by NATO and the KDP against North and South Kurdistan, Rojava and Shengal, but also against the whole society in Turkey and our people at home and abroad. The aim to be achieved by these fascist-genocidal attacks is clear: to suffocate Leader Apo (Abdullah Öcalan) in the isolation of Imrali, to crush the Kurdistan Freedom Guerrilla, to liquidate the PKK and to complete the cultural genocide in North Kurdistan, to intimidate our patriotic people and their democratic friends and to occupy South Kurdistan and Rojava.

There is no doubt that these attacks are primarily aimed at Leader Apo, who has been held hostage on Imrali for 25 years and has not been heard from for 29 months. Requests for visits from family members and lawyers are continuously refused. While on the one hand, these visits are prevented under the pretext of constructed disciplinary sanctions, on the other hand, it is made impossible for Leader Apo to regain his physical freedom on the basis of European law. The unprecedented physical and psychological repression and torture on Imrali have reached a new high. Therefore, all those who call themselves patriots and democrats must be vigilant and fight against this system of annihilation. This is the most basic measure for sustainable democracy and patriotism.

Leader Öcalan has been waging the greatest and most meaningful freedom struggle against the system of torture and genocide on Imrali for 25 years. This resistance must be interpreted and embraced correctly. This resistance represents dignification of human virtue against any form of genocidal attacks. It keeps alive Kurdishness and humanity that are wanted choked.  This truth must be understood correctly and the struggle for freedom and democracy must be expanded, based on the physical freedom of Leader Öcalan. On this basis, we salute our people’s attitude that embraced Leader Öcalan in Lausanne on the hundredth anniversary of the genocidal treaty, and the call of our friends, European trade unions, intellectuals and municipalities that called for the physical freedom of Leader Öcalan in Brussels on July 26. On the same basis, we call for the expansion of actions to demand the physical freedom of Leader Öcalan against the system of torture and isolation on Imrali.

The attacks are based on support from NATO, Astana and the KDP

It is obvious that the attacks against the freedom guerrillas and Leader Apo have been intensified. Since 19 July, new invasion attacks have been launched against Zap, Avaşîn and Metîna and all kinds of prohibited weapons, including tactical nuclear weapons, have been used. AKP/MHP fascism is mobilising all the forces and means of Turkey to occupy the Medya Defence Zones, which it has not been able to occupy despite its attacks since August 2016. It is quite clear that it relies on the support of NATO, Astana and the KDP to develop these murderous occupation attacks.

Undoubtedly, as in the past seven years, the Kurdistan Freedom Guerrilla continues to resist heroically and does not let the fascist genocidal attacks of occupiers through. As can be read in the press every day, our guerrilla forces are dealing heavy blows to the occupiers with their actions. As with the Imrali resistance, it is also necessary to recognise the historical importance of the current guerrilla resistance for Kurdish freedom and democratic humanity. In this context, we salute all our guerrilla forces, the commanders and fighters of the HPG and YJA-Star who are fighting against the fascist enemy in the Medya Defence Zones, especially in Zap, Avaşîn and Metîna, as well as in the whole of Kurdistan, and congratulate them on their success. We believe that the guerrilla actions will continue to spread and will continue to deal heavy blows to the enemy.

Call for total resistance

The fascist attacks that Tayyip Erdoğan and the fascist dictatorship of the People's Alliance are trying to develop in the new period must be seen as a whole. These attacks have ideological, political and military dimensions and are directed against all sections of society, especially against youth and women. They are not only directed against the Kurds, but also against the peoples of Turkey and the whole of humanity. With boundless exploitation, nature and human values are being destroyed. In this context, we welcome the struggles against the destruction of nature, as in Akbelen, and the resistance of journalists who nevertheless shout out the truth. We call on all our people, the peoples of Turkey and democratic humanity to strengthen the resistance against the fascist aggression of the AKP/MHP regime and for freedom and democracy in all fields.

Spying activities mustn’t be given a chance

It is obvious that AKP/MHP fascism does not only rely on technical means in these attacks, but also increasingly on agents, collaborators and traitors. It tries to use all means and methods at its disposal to recruit agents. This ranges from intimidation to bribery. Fascism tries to infiltrate patriotic and democratic groups in particular, in order to attack the castle from within, so to speak. In this context, all our people and their friends, especially the youth and women, should be very alert and not give such spying activities a chance. We know that the struggle against the fascist-genocidal attacks of fascism is inseparable from the struggle against treachery by agents and collaborators. Therefore, it is important and necessary for all patriots and democrats to continue this struggle effectively everywhere and in every place.

August, a month of genocide and resistance

Now a new August begins for us as a movement and as a people. August is not only a month of revolutionary breakthrough, but also a month of genocide and resistance against it. In fact, we are completing the ninth year after the Shengal genocide started by ISIS on 3 August 2014 and the great resistance against it. The tenth year is beginning. First and foremost, we condemn these genocidal attacks and once again salute and celebrate the great resistance of our Kurdish Yazidi people. In the person of Mam Zekî Şengalî, we remember with respect and gratitude all the heroic martyrs of this great resistance. We are convinced that this resistance will become stronger in its tenth year and that democratic, autonomous life will continue to develop.

We, as the PKK, have stood by the side of the Yazidi Kurdish people against the genocidal attacks of ISIS from the first moment and have contributed to the struggle for the freedom of Shengal with dozens of martyrs. Later, when it was said that 'the PKK is an obstacle to civilian political life', we withdrew our guerrilla forces from the area. But although five years have passed since, the powers that said so and are dealing with the region have not come up with a serious democratic solution. Instead, as the 9 October agreement shows, they have decided to establish a new system of oppression and domination over our Kurdish Yazidi people. On this occasion, we warn these powers and call on them to abandon their sinister aspirations, fulfil their promises and support the free development of the democratic, autonomous life of our Yazidi Kurdish people. We also declare that we are following this situation closely in order to prevent our Yazidi Kurdish people from being exposed to a new genocide.

We remember all our August martyrs in the person of comrades Hüseyin Mahir, Sarı Ibrahim, Agit Garzan and Atakan Mahir with respect, love and gratitude, and we reaffirm our pledge to achieve their goals and keep their memory alive."