The 54th session of the Permanent Peoples' Tribunal, a civilian initiative established by non-governmental organisations and lawyers on 24 June 1979, was held in Brussels on 5-6 February. During the session, which was organised with the agenda of "war crimes" committed by Turkey in North and East Syria since 2018, lawyers from many parts of the world presented "evidence that Turkey's attacks in North and East Syria are war crimes" to the court. In its verdict, the court noted that Turkey's actions were aimed at eliminating Kurdish identity, existence and culture and that the attacks are crimes under international law. The judgement warned that Turkey's attacks could result in genocide if the international community does not stand against Turkey's attacks.

 

Ezio Menzione, a criminal lawyer who presented the evidence of Turkey's war crimes to the court, evaluated the court and Turkey's attacks to Mezopotamya Agency (MA). Stating that he attended the Permanent Peoples' Tribunal on Turkey's attacks in 2018 as a witness, Menzione said, "Turkish Government was the accused one is against Kurdish people, the many crimes which now, just like then, Turkish Government perpetrates toward Kurds and so on. It was a good experience. So when this year they asked me to participate, to take part as an accuser toward the Turkish Government. I said immediately, ‘Yes’. Because it's important. It doesn't decide any decision operative against Erdogan or against the Ministry of War and so on. But it reveals the political and the historical events, and it's very, very well considered in the international opinion.  Its decisions make a very firm stand in the international environment."

 

'ROJAVA IS AN EXAMPLE FOR THE KURDS IN TURKEY'

 

Menzione stated that he had knowledge of the Kurdish situation, that he had travelled around Kurdistan, and that this was how he got to know the experience in North and East Syria.

 

Menzione said, "The Kurds in Rojava, where those who have beaten the ISIS regime, and it's very important. They started a new democratic experience, in a scenery that needs democracy. And it was a wonderful experience. I read about it. It's obvious that Rojava, it could be, it was, and it is an example for Kurds in Turkey, and that's why it is so hated by Erdoğan and his government. It's not only a matter of expansion of aggression. But I'm sure that Erdogan and his government want to choke the democratic experience of Rojava. That's why there is a daily attack from Turkey to Rojava. "

 

'ATTACKS ARE DIRECTED AGAINST THE ALL POPULATION'

 

Stating that Turkey targeted infrastructure in its attacks on the region, Menzione said that when a hospital or a village is targeted, the effect of the attack is limited to that area, but when infrastructure is targeted, the entire population is targeted, and this is considered a war crime. Menzione said, "So I concentrated about the Swediye gas station and Alok water plant. Alok water plant that period let's say summer 2023 january 24 when Swediye gas station was totally destroyed. In that period, they didn't bomb actually the  Alok water plant. They bombed the energy plant, because it was the energy which allowed the water plant to go on. First of all, it involves only civilians, because both plants were typically civilian, not military. They had nothing to do with the military struggle. And they were crime, they were an attack against the all population of the region. It involved almost 1 million people who suffered of primarily needs, as it is, water and light and energy. They attack to the primary necessities of any person in an all huge region, Haseke city and the province."

 

'THEY WANT TO DISPLACE THE KURDS, THIS IS THE MOST HORRIBLE CRIME'

 

Stating that the main purpose of targeting infrastructure that serves civilians and has no military character, Menzione emphasised that these attacks aim to displace the Kurdish population, just like what happened in Afrin 6 years ago, and said: "They have a so called Safe Zone. But they want to go upper and upper, They want the all belt, which is under the Turkish border. That's their goal. I don't think they will stop before they they have won, also the other part of Rojava, which means that they have to displace people. It happened in Afrin, where 100,000 people they consider for the original but around 300,000 people who had to flee away from their villages, from their city, from their homes. In the same is happening in the northern region. When it was, for instance, the attack to the Alok water plant, you started to see long lines of people who had to displace, not necessarily going abroad, but going to other parts of Syria, to leave their homes, to leave their family. The biggest tragedy is that. Because I think that when you displace people, when you oblige people to leave their home and their family, that's the biggest crime that you can perpetrate. Just look around what's happening in Gaza with Palestinians, they want to displace them. That's the most horrible crime that, in this case, Turkish Government perpetrates towards Rojava and Kurds. Part is the fact that it wants to stop the democratic experience of the autonomous administration, of course, the two are related. But I consider displacement as the biggest crime of this moment." 

 

'THEY WILL PAY A HEAVY PRICE'

 

Underlining that Turkey is organising the Syrian National Army (SMO) to attack North and East Syria, Menzione added, "They support the jihadists because they need a hand inside Rojava against the Kurds, against the Kurdish experience. They prefer to use the null jihadist, I call them the null jihadist, because that's it, they don't have any autonomy, they are just a tool in the hands of Turkish Government. They will pay, you can see that they will pay, not only as far as money is concerned, but they will pay a political expense, a very heavy political expense."

 

INTERNATIONAL SILENCE

 

Drawing attention to the international silence, Menzione said that this silence was very clear in the Permanent People's Court. Stating that this silence stems from the agreement between the US, Turkey and Israel in Syria, Menzione said that Syria will be divided into 3 parts, one part will be left to Israel and one part to Turkey, and he could not predict what would happen to Damascus, "Of course, now they have to keep silent about the whole situation. And they let the Turkish Government to oppress and to try to put an end to the Rojava experience."

 

Pointing out that Turkey's attack on Syrian territory without the approval of the United Nations (UN) Security Council is a violation of international law, Menzione said that the UN is blocked, which is why the International Criminal Court is also in crisis.

 

Stating that the way to stop the attacks is to ensure the recognition of the Autonomous Administration and that a campaign should be launched for this, Menzione continued: "One important thing is to let international environment know what's happening. Because here in Italy, we don't even know what's going on. And I read Turkish agencies, which are translated into English. Even in Turkey, it's considered something which has happens elsewhere. And it's very, very important to let people in Turkey not only in Turkish Kurdistan, in the all country that there is a daily aggression which perpetrates international crimes, crimes against the human rights and bombing and the shortage of water, of energy, shortage of medical care and so on. You must double your efforts to let people know. Because knowledge is the most important part. Then it will follow our initiatives."

 

MA / Hîvda Çelebi