Stop the assaults on Kurdistan! Solidarity with the Kurds

October 19, 2017

Stop the assaults on Kurdistan! Solidarity with the Kurdish people!

The Communist League joins with other supporters of the Kurdish people’s fight for independence in opposing the armed occupation of Kirkuk and surrounding areas by the Iraqi government and by the Hashd al-Shaabi militia under the command of the Iranian government’s Revolutionary Guards. These attacks open the road to further assaults on Kurdish areas.

On September 25, millions of people in the Kurdish areas of Iraq voted overwhelmingly in favour of an independent Kurdistan. This brought an immediate and harsh response from the capitalist governments in Iraq, Iran, Turkey and Syria, where the vast majority of the Kurdish people live. These regimes imposed a blockade to isolate and strangle Kurdistan, by shutting down its international airports, closing its borders, and cutting off its sale of oil and other exports.

These governments were emboldened to launch their military actions and blockade by the United States government’s categorical opposition to Kurdish independence and call for a “united Iraq”.

The New Zealand government has backed the Iraqi government. Since 2015 it has sent army personnel to train Iraqi troops to “become better fighters”.

The Kurds, numbering more than 30 million, are the largest nationality in the world without their own country. They have suffered bloody attacks and often been denied the right to speak their language, own land, or even be treated as citizens of the countries they live in. Despite tremendous odds they have refused to stop fighting for their national rights and have made significant advances. They have helped lead the fight against Islamic State in Syria and Iraq.

The Communist League stands in solidarity with the Kurdish people and opposes the armed attacks and blockade on their territory. We demand: Stop the assaults on Kurdistan now! Recognise the results of the Kurdish independence referendum! United States and New Zealand out of the Middle East!

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