A number of political parties and civil society organisations in Northern Kurdistan held a press conference in Amed (tr: Diyarbakır) warning against a new edition of the fratricidal war in view of the attack by KDP troops against the guerrillas.  The press conference on Friday was attended by representatives of the Democratic Society Congress (DTK), Democratic Regions’ Party (DBP), Free Women’s Movement (Tevgera Jinên Azad-TJA), Peace Mothers Assembly, MED-TUHAD FED (Federation of Law and Solidarity Associations for the Families of Detainees and Convicts), MEBYA-DER (Association for Assistance, Solidarity and Culture with Families Who Lost Their Relatives in the Cradle of Civilizations), Human and Freedom Party (PIA).

The appeal against a renewed war between the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) and the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) came after the KDP troops, who had been deployed to the town of Sîdekan, north-east of Hewlêr (Erbil), attacked guerrilla positions in Gewriya Zînê on Thursday. After the attack, fighting broke out and the situation remained tense.

Reading the press statement, DTK Co-Chair Berdan Öztürk pointed out that everyone should act with sensitivity and the responsibility to embrace the gains and freedom of the Kurdish people in the current process, which, he said, holds not only historic opportunities but also great dangers for the Kurds. “All those who want to understand and realise our people's will to freely take their place on the stage of history as their own must act with this sensitivity," he said.

“An intra-Kurdish war and a possible annulment of Kurdish achievements are unacceptable. Especially at a time when Kurds are being attacked from all four sides and regional and global actors want to eliminate our achievements, we will oppose a fratricidal war with all our strength. We, who have been striving for national unity for many years, call on those who are responsible for driving us into a violent conflict to urgently stand up for the interests of their people," said the Kurdish politician.

Öztürk continued: “The effects of the destruction, devastation and trauma caused by intra-Kurdish wars in the past are still being felt at present. Today, as then, this conflict will primarily be beneficial for those forces that want the Kurdish people to lose, seek to subjugate them and push them into statuslessness. There is no doubt that it is the enemies of the Kurds who are now rubbing their hands and trying to play the Kurdish forces off against each other. As in the past, the only losers of a fratricidal war today will be the Kurdish people and all those who do politics in their name. In this context, we appeal to the KDP, which has been acting in partnership with Turkey for far too long and is a pillar of the AKP's anti-Kurdish policy, to act responsibly and to refrain from the destructive role it has taken in the past."

The Kurdish politician pointed out that: "The Kurdish people have led resistances that are exemplary for the whole world, both before and after the division of Kurdistan into four parts by the artificial borders drawn by the occupying powers. Each of these struggles has caused great changes in its time and in its environment and represents important experiences on the way to freedom. After all these struggles, after all these costs and at a time when the Kurdish people are so close to achieving the peace and freedom they deserve, those who are instruments of the policies of the colonialist states will be nothing but an indelible black mark in history. Our people will not forgive those who try to instigate another fratricidal war according to the wishes and specifications of the regional powers that have considered Kurdistan as a colony for a hundred years. We appeal to those responsible to act with moral, conscientious and historical responsibility in order not to appear before our people again in such a sinister and destructive role."

Öztürk called on the Kurdish people, intellectuals, artists and all those who love their people and country to preserve the gains of the people, to prevent a possible internal conflict and to act with seriousness to serve unity. “Tomorrow might be too late. We have to go into action all together today. Our struggle ongoing for hundreds of years is meant to carry us forward. It is time to walk together towards freedom,” he added.

In protest against the KDP's provocation, the mentioned parties and organizations will hold a demonstration in Şırnak on Saturday. The protest march is expected to go to the Turkish-Iraqi border crossing in Silopi district. Participants of the press conference called for participation in the demonstration tomorrow.