Syrian Kurds courting Turkmens
Security and the future role of Syrian Turkmens depend on alliance with Kurds.
“We are ready to protect Turkmens and form an alliance with them against al-Qaeda.”
This unexpected offer came from Salih Muslim, the co-chairman of the Democratic Union Party (PYD), which is steadily increasing its influence in Syria and is commonly referred to as the “Syrian franchise” of the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK). In an interview with Al-Monitor via Skype, Muslim voiced concern about the attacks on Turkmens by the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS), which was "excommunicated" by al-Qaeda a few days ago but nevertheless follows its bloody terror tactics by the book. “All the people in Syria are our brothers. Our doors are wide open for Turkmens. We are waiting for them to contact us,” Muslim said.
