Kurdish Council warns of hate speech at Damascus-backed gatherings
Kurdish Council warns of hate speech at Damascus-backed gatherings
QAMISHLI, Syria (North Press) – The Syrian Kurdish National Council (ENKS) announced on Saturday night that it is following “with deep concern” recent celebrations called on by Syrian Transitional President Ahmad al-Sharaa, warning that the rhetoric expressed at these events “took on racist and sectarian dimensions.”
In a statement, the Council said that the platforms of these gatherings were used “to spread hate speech and incite hostility against the Kurdish people and other components of Syrian society.”
It stressed that such practices “undermine any possibility of building a civil state that guarantees the rights of all citizens, and push the country toward greater division and fragmentation.”
The Council called for accountability for those who promote hate speech and threaten civil peace, urging “the Syrian transitional administration in Damascus to take a clear and firm stance rejecting such rhetoric.”
The statement added that the path to stability begins with acknowledging that “Syria is a multi-ethnic, multi-religious, and multi-sectarian country, and that its constitution must guarantee the rights of all communities — including the national rights of the Kurdish people — within the framework of the country’s unity.”
The statement by the ENKS comes amid heightened political tensions in areas under the authority of the Syrian transitional government in Damascus. Over the past week, pro-government celebrations and rallies have been organized in the capital following public calls by Transitional President Ahmad al-Sharaa.
Videos circulated on social media showed groups of young men chanting slogans perceived as derogatory toward Kurds, prompting widespread criticism from Kurdish political parties, civil society actors, and rights organizations.
Such incidents are particularly sensitive given Syria’s long history of discriminatory policies targeting Kurdish cultural and political rights under the former Assad government, including citizenship deprivation, restrictions on language and cultural expression, and offensives on Kurdish-majority regions.
Since the political transition began last year, Kurdish parties — including ENKS and the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (AANES) — have repeatedly urged the new authorities to adopt inclusive rhetoric, guarantee minority rights in the future constitution, and prevent a return to sectarian or ethnic marginalization.
Reporting by Abdulsalam Khoja
Editing by Jwan Shekaki
QAMISHLI, Syria (North Press) – The Syrian Kurdish National Council (ENKS) announced on Saturday night that it is following “with deep concern” recent celebrations called on by Syrian Transitional President Ahmad al-Sharaa, warning that the rhetoric expressed at these events “took on racist and sectarian dimensions.”
In a statement, the Council said that the platforms of these gatherings were used “to spread hate speech and incite hostility against the Kurdish people and other components of Syrian society.”
It stressed that such practices “undermine any possibility of building a civil state that guarantees the rights of all citizens, and push the country toward greater division and fragmentation.”
The Council called for accountability for those who promote hate speech and threaten civil peace, urging “the Syrian transitional administration in Damascus to take a clear and firm stance rejecting such rhetoric.”
The statement added that the path to stability begins with acknowledging that “Syria is a multi-ethnic, multi-religious, and multi-sectarian country, and that its constitution must guarantee the rights of all communities — including the national rights of the Kurdish people — within the framework of the country’s unity.”
The statement by the ENKS comes amid heightened political tensions in areas under the authority of the Syrian transitional government in Damascus. Over the past week, pro-government celebrations and rallies have been organized in the capital following public calls by Transitional President Ahmad al-Sharaa.
Videos circulated on social media showed groups of young men chanting slogans perceived as derogatory toward Kurds, prompting widespread criticism from Kurdish political parties, civil society actors, and rights organizations.
Such incidents are particularly sensitive given Syria’s long history of discriminatory policies targeting Kurdish cultural and political rights under the former Assad government, including citizenship deprivation, restrictions on language and cultural expression, and offensives on Kurdish-majority regions.
Since the political transition began last year, Kurdish parties — including ENKS and the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (AANES) — have repeatedly urged the new authorities to adopt inclusive rhetoric, guarantee minority rights in the future constitution, and prevent a return to sectarian or ethnic marginalization.
Reporting by Abdulsalam Khoja