- Title: Thousands demonstrate in Berlin against Turkish offensive into Syria
- Date: 12th October 2019
- Summary: BERLIN, GERMANY (OCTOBER 12, 2019) (REUTERS) VARIOUS OF DEMONSTRATION AGAINST COLONIALISM, WITH MANY KURDISH FLAGS DEMONSTRATORS WITH SIGN, READING (German) "ERDOGAN + MURDERER OF CHILDREN" PLACARD, SHOWING IMAGE OF U.S. PRESIDENT TRUMP HUGGING PERSON CLAD IN CAMOUFLAGE AND WIELDING KNIFE, DRIPPING WITH BLOOD PROTESTERS AND TILT UP TO FLAGS PROTESTERS AND PLACARDS ON GROUND DEMONSTRATORS WAVING FLAGS (SOUNDBITE) (German) NUJIVAN GUNAY, CO-HEAD OF KURDISH COUNCIL BERLIN AND FOUNDER OF COUNCIL FOR WOMEN BERLIN, SAYING: "Our wish is that Europeans do not only watch helplessly from the sides. We are here with our German friends, to demonstrate shoulder to shoulder against this fascism. But we want to set a clear sign, Kurds will take to the street everywhere for Rojava (Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria). We will not rest until this stops. Because there is no IS, the YPG and YPJ (Kurdish People's Protection Units or People's Defence Units) has fought IS there. Erdogan's goal is to revive DAESH (IS), to strengthen DAESH, to support DAESH politically, logistically and with weapons." DEMONSTRATORS HOLDING UP SIGN, READING "Rojava will be victorious" (SOUNDBITE) (German) NUJIVAN GUNAY, CO-HEAD OF KURDISH COUNCIL BERLIN AND FOUNDER OF COUNCIL FOR WOMEN BERLIN, SAYING: "For Europe to allow Erdogan to blackmail them with the migrants - I say, Europe be strong and don't kneel in front of Erdogan. We Europeans rather have 5 million refugees here but one DAESH militia. Because DAESH is a threat to all of us, not just for Kurds." WIDE OF DEMONSTRATION
- Embargoed: 26th October 2019 15:40
- Keywords: Kurds Syria demo Berlin
- Location: BERLIN, GERMANY
- City: BERLIN, GERMANY
- Country: Germany
- Topics: Diplomacy/Foreign Policy,Government/Politics
- Reuters ID: LVA001B0SIX53
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: Several thousand people in Berlin took the opportunity on Saturday to demonstrate against the Turkish invasion into Northern Syria.
Turkish forces stepped up their bombardment around a town in northeast Syria on Saturday, the fourth day of an offensive against a Kurdish militia, after U.S. troops in the region came under artillery fire from Turkish positions.
Turkey opened its offensive after U.S. President Donald Trump spoke by phone on Sunday with Turkey's President Tayyip Erdogan and withdrew U.S. troops who had been fighting alongside Kurdish forces.
On Friday evening, Erdogan dismissed mounting international criticism of the operation and said Turkey "will not stop it, no matter what anyone says".
On the frontlines, thick plumes of smoke rose around Syria's Ras al Ain, one of two border towns targeted in the offensive, as Turkish artillery targeted the area on Saturday, said a Reuters reporter across the frontier in the Turkish town of Ceylanpinar.
The civilian death toll resulting from Turkey's offensive into northern Syria has risen to 30, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said on Saturday. The Syrian Kurdish-led administration in northeastern Syria said on Saturday that 191,069 people have been displaced as a result of Turkish military operations. The United Nations on Friday estimated some 100,000 people had left their homes in northern Syria since the offensive began on Wednesday.
The civilian death toll resulting from Turkey's offensive into northern Syria has risen to 30, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said on Saturday.
Turkey aims to set up a "safe zone" inside Syria, where it can resettle many of the 3.6 million refugees it has been hosting. Erdogan threatened to send refugees to Europe if the European Union did not back his assault, prompting a furious response from the EU.
The Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) said 23 of its fighters were killed on Friday while fighting a Turkish offensive in northern Syria, and a further 37 wounded.
It brings the SDF death toll as declared by the SDF to 45 since Wednesday.
German weekly Bild Am Sonntag (Bams) quoted the foreign minister as saying on Saturday that Germany has banned arms exports to Turkey as a reaction to the country's assault on the Kurdish YPG militia in northern Syria.
"Against the backdrop of the Turkish military offensive in north-eastern Syria, the Federal Government will not issue any new permits for all military equipment that could be used by Turkey in Syria", Foreign Minister Heiko Maas told the paper.
Germany exported arms worth 243 million euros ($268 million) to Turkey in 2018, accounting for almost one third of all German weapons exports, according to the paper.
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