Matthew BarberVerified account

37) Previous threads on related issues: a) On Turkey's bombing of Sinjar in Apr '17: https://twitter.com/Matthew__Barber/status/856914882284990464 … b) On US/Turkey/PKK/Sinjar:https://twitter.com/Matthew__Barber/status/979434716020568065 …

36) They commission reports, assessments, and surveys, but take no meaningful political steps to hold accountable the actors who actively continue the victimization of the post-Genocide #Yazidi community.

35) High level officials and heads of state from countless governments around the world have expressed sympathy with the Yazidis and pledged to rebuild Sinjar and help end this Genocide.

34) Four years on, the Yazidis remain in tents in camps, while the KDP keeps the Dohuk-Sinjar road closed to NGO and civilian traffic. Yazidis cannot visit their homes unless they travel through Mosul, a dangerous route for them. Reconstruction is almost non-existent.

33) At every new stage of this disaster, the US could have (and was begged to) initiate adequate intervention to end this competition and allow Yazidis to return home. Instead, the US sits on the sidelines while occasionally "expressing disapproval" to various political actors.

32) Today's episode & the killing of Mam Zaki ultimately underscore the failure of the US to provide any meaningful leadership in resolving the Yazidi Genocide. Sinjar has been caught in a proxy conflict involving at least 7 major state and non-state actors for four years.

31) On March 23, 2018, following threats from Erdogan that Turkey would attack Sinjar, the PKK announced that it would be withdrawing its guerrilla forces from Sinjar, but would leave behind the local YBŞ force. Figures like Mazlum & Mam Zaki—who are both Yazidis—remained.

30) Yazidis were very upset about that incident and met with US officials to plead with them (yet again) for protection for Sinjar. High-level State Department officials gave Yazidi advocates assurances that they would not allow Turkey to bomb Sinjar again.

29) Today is not the first time that Turkey bombed Sinjar. On Apr. 25, 2017, it bombed Yazidi YBŞ positions, but Yazidis were able to vacate their bases ahead of time and none were killed. The Turkish planes did fire on a Peshmerga base by mistake, killing several KDP Peshmerga.

28) Some people are connecting this event to a speech made by #Iraqi PM Abadi's in Turkey yesterday, which they believe was interpreted as a green light to Turkey to attack the PKK in Sinjar.

26) The attack occurred in Sinjar itself, not on the Syrian border. The convoy was returning to Khanasor from Kocho, passing along the road that curves around the westward end of the mountain, from Shilo to Bara.

25) When a convoy of #Yazidis who saved #Sinjar from the Islamic State (#IS) is bombed by #Turkey, I think we should seriously consider who the terrorists are in this picture.

24) I am confused as to why the PKK would be on the terror list while Turkey is not. Is terrorism something that only a non-state actor can perform? Does anyone believe for a moment that the PKK has conducted more violence than that waged by Turkey against the Kurdish people?

23) We should oppose all forms of violence against civilians, but we should also recognize that Kurdish violence has occurred in the context of rampant abuses, oppression, and terror waged against Kurds by the Turkish state.

22) Today, Turkey killed this man whom they labelled "terrorist." Supporters of the Turkish government love to invoke the PKK's inclusion on the "terror list" as though the list is a divinely-inspired document, rather than a fallible human document with political ramifications.

21) Mam Zaki belonged to the Yazidi Chilka tribe. Today, a Yazidi man described him to me thus: "He saw himself as a Yazidi first, before seeing himself as a member of the PKK. He was very close to the significant Yazidi figures and community. Everyone knew and respected him."

20) In addition to overseeing food aid, support for medical & school resources, and the creation of administrative institutions, Mam Zaki was highly respected as a mediator who solved a lot of local conflicts and rivalries in Sinjar.

19) While the PKK and affiliates did what they could to bring life back to these families, the KDP imposed an economic blockade to starve Sinjar, preventing all goods from reaching the people there and inhibiting recovery/reconstruction. Politically motivated, it was disgusting.