YPG: People’s Protection Units and Kurdish Peshmerga

YPG: People’s Protection Units

YPG is an acronym whose translation means People’s Protection Units. It is the home grown defense forces of the Kurdish area of Syria. It emerged after the Civil War erupted in Syria and started to spill over into Syrian Kurdistan, now known as Rojava, or Western Kurdistan.

The People of the YPG

The men and women who make up the fighting force come from local communities and are mostly Kurdish, but the YPG also fights alongside non-Kurdish soldiers from the area including Syrian, Assyrian and Armenian Christians. And there are a small number of Americans and Europeans who’ve volunteered individually to join YPG in the fight against ISIS.

History of YPG

The Kurdish communities in Rojava have lived there for thousands of years. The modern-day YPG was formed after the Qamishli uprising in 2004 by the Kurdish Democratic Union Party (PYD).

Role in Kobane

During the Kobane siege in 2014, Turkish Kurds demonstrated in support of their brethren in Rojava who were poorly equipped and prepared.  The YPG were being pushed back and it looked like ISIS would achieve victory.  Then the U.S. started providing air support striking key targets and dropping military supplies and Turkey allowed Peshmerga Units to transit Turkey to support the YPG, the siege was broken and YPG has taken control of Kobane. This has been the first major defeat for ISIS which many hope will be the turning point in the War against ISIS.   And this has brought worldwide attention to the YPG.

Structure of YPG

The YPG is a democratic socialist organization in which Officers are elected by troops and equality regardless of gender, religion and ethnicity is guaranteed.

The YPG operate like a guerrilla force using stealth, surprise and hit and run tactics which has been proven to be effective against more conventional forces who invade and occupy. They operate with a large degree of autonomy so they can adapt quickly to battlefield conditions and mobilize their forces rapidly.

YPG Relations with Other Organizations

The YPG has aligned itself with other forces against ISIS. Its’ forces were joined by the Peshmerga in the battle for Kobane. The YPG joined Peshmerga in Iraq to free the Yazidi community in Sinjar and was instrumental in providing security through Syria to Turkey for the refugees as they were fleeing ISIS forces. YPG has joined forces with the Free Syrian Army to fight ISIS.

The war against ISIS has been the catalyst to put aside the differences between the various parties to fight the more immediate battle against a brutal force.  But as the conflict subsides, the differences will arise again:  the Turks are suspicious of the alliance between the PKK and the YPG; the Peshmerga are concerned that the YPG and their sponsors, the PYD and PKK may have intents on unifying Kurdistan which would be a threat to the KRG in Iraq.  It is very much a liquid situation that is evolving and  no one really knows what the future holds.

Although the battle is far from over, it appears that the YPG including its’ all female brigade, the YPJ, are capable,  given the air support,  military equipment and arms as well as regional ground support, as a force to be reckoned with in the battle with ISIS for the Middle East.

Kurdish Peshmerga

Peshmerga, which means, “those who face death,” is the military of the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) and Iraqi Kurdistan. Their existence dates back to the mid-20th Century when Mustafa Barzani picked up arms to fight for Kurdistan autonomy.

“No Friends But the Mountains”

But the tradition of a guerrilla resistance force fighting for Kurdish autonomy goes back to the origins of the Kurdish people. Because the land area has always been subject to regional and major powers vying for dominance, a resistance force always emerged as they took refuge in the mountains.

Up against much greater forces in the Iraqi Army and Air Force, the Peshmerga was not successful until after the 1990-1991 Gulf War when the U.S. and U.K. enforced a no-fly zone in the North of Iraq.

After the Kurdistan Regional Government was established, the Peshmerga officially became the armed forces and responsible for the security of the Kurdistan Region of Iraq.

Kurdish Civil War: Peshmerga Divided

Originally, the Peshmerga was led by Mustafa Barzani, the head of the Kurdish Democratic Party (KDP), but in the aftermath of another failed revolt, which resulted in the defeat of the Peshmerga by Iraqi forces in the mid-1970’s, the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) arose and formed their own Peshmerga.

The ideological split along both tribal (Barzani family) and political (PUK is more progressive and liberal) lines divided Kurds, and eventually led to the Kurdish Civil War of the 1990’s. During the Civil War, the Peshmerga took sides and opposing forces were responsible for Kurds killing and maiming other Kurds. It ended when KDP’s Head, Massoud Barzani, signed a peace treaty with the PUK Head, Jalal Talibani.

According to the 1992 Constitution of the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG), the President of Kurdistan is the Commander-in-Chief of the Peshmerga Armed Forces.[1] In an effort to unite against the Islamic State in August 2014, KRG President Massoud Barzani issued orders to the Ministry of Peshmerga Affairs to reform the Peshmerga under a unified single command structure.

The Peshmerga and the U.S. Military

In addition to functioning as a military force, the Peshmerga has intelligence gathering capabilities. The Peshmerga, the KRG and the U.S. share information to make the area and the world safer from terrorist organizations and activities. In the 2003 invasion of Iraq by U.S.-led Coalition Forces, the Peshmerga played a part in capturing Saddam Hussein.

In 2004, the Kurds (Peshmerga) on instructions from the CIA apprehended and captured an envoy traveling through Kurdistan to get to Iraq. His name was Hassan Ghul and he in the employ of Osama bin Laden. While the Kurds interrogated him (he was not tortured), Ghul revealed that bin Laden always used the same courier to send and receive messages — Abu Ahmed al-Kuwaiti. This was the key piece of intelligence that led to finding the location of bin Laden’s hideout and his eventual execution.[2]

The Peshmerga and ISIS

When the ISIS forces burst onto the battlefield in Syria and Iraq capturing large swathes of land, infrastructure and resources, the Kurdish Peshmerga mobilized while the Iraqi Army fell into full retreat. Peshmerga forces immediately moved in to take control of Kirkuk, and have been defending against an onslaught of offensive attacks by ISIS ever since.

Although the media have portrayed the Peshmerga as a reliable and effective modern force in an area where the news reports are more gruesome day after day, significant challenges lie ahead. Peshmerga training and equipment may not even be up to par with the Islamic State, since the latter was able to capture American-made equipment and munitions originally supplied to the Iraqi Army.

With the ISIS onslaught, the Peshmerga has gotten the attention of the U.S. as well as regional powers that the Peshmerga is best positioned to defeat ISIS — but they’ll need support, training, equipment and arms.

KDP: Kurdistan Democratic Party

The Kurdish Democratic Party (KDP) is the oldest Kurdish political party in Iraqi Kurdistan. It was founded in 1946 in the Kurdish region of Iran where the Iraqi Kurds led by Mustafa Barzani were taking refuge.

From its inception, the KDP has led the fight for autonomy and independence from Iraq, but has suffered setbacks and defeat at the hands of the much more powerful Iraqi Army and Air Force. Towards the end of the 20th century, the KDP turned toward Iran for support to further its own nationalist objectives. Iran and Iraq have both played the KDP against their eachother for political and military purposes.

Founding of the KDP

Founded in 1946, the Soviet Union pushed Mustafa Barzani to form the KDP in an attempt to support the Kurdish nationalist movement against the monarchies of Iran and Iraq which were supported by the West.

As the first modern political party, the various factions of the KDP spanned a wide spectrum of ideology from left wing communists to right wing tribal conservatives. In the middle, there were progressive socialists and traditionalists. Some wanted their own nation, others were content with limited autonomy within a federated government based in Baghdad.

KDP and the Iraqi Government

During 1950s, ‘60s, and ‘70s a pattern repeated itself again and again. A new Arabist leader would assert his belief in the Kurds as distinct and equal ethnic group in Iraq with political rights. Once the leader was successful at consolidating his power, he would repress Kurdish political rights, put armed forces in Kurdish regions, ban nationalist political parties, destroy Kurdish villages, and forcibly impose resettlement (especially in petroleum-rich areas).

As a result, from late 1961 onwards, conflict became normalized in Iraqi Kurdistan. A major development towards peace was initiated when the Iraqi government and Kurdish leaders signed the 1970 Peace Agreement. It promised Kurdish self-rule, recognition of the bi-national character of Iraq, political representation in the central government, extensive official language rights, the freedom of association and organization, and several other concessions aimed at restoring full civic rights to the Kurdish population. It was to come into effect within four years. In 1974 the weaker Law of Autonomy in the Area of Kurdistan was actually implemented with much weaker citizenship protections. Moreover, the law didn’t extend to Kirkuk, an oil industry center recognized as Kurdish, so conflict soon resumed.

The 1980s, especially during the Iran-Iraq war, was a particular low point for Iraqi Kurds. Approximately 500,000 Kurdish civilians were sent to detention camps in southern and eastern Iraq and the Iraqi armed forces razed villages and hamlets in and near the battle area. It was also at this time that the Iraqi military infamously used chemical weapons on Kurdish towns in the Al-Anfal campaigns.

The KDP and the PUK

In the wake of their defeat during the 1974–1975 War, Mustafa Barzani and his sons Idris and Masoud fled to Iran. The power vacuum they left behind was filled by their ideological opposition, Jalal Talabani, a Kurd who, together with his Leftist supporters, announced the formation of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK).

Despite the terrible hardships suffered by the Kurds as a whole, the tension between the PUK and KDP sparked internecine fighting that would continue for decades. The fighting ceased after the Kurdish Civil War, which began in 1994 and concluded in 1998 when Masoud Barzani and Talabani signed the Washington Agreement..

KDP and Movement for Change

Following the 2011 Egyptian protests, another political party, the Movement for Change, called for the resignation of the Cabinet and the disbanding of the Kurdistan Regional Government. In response to the accompanying protests against the Kurdistan Regional Government, the KDP was cited as opening fire, killing two protesters and wounding several others. Later in the evening, they burnt down several buildings belonging to Movement for Change, including a TV and radio station. This violence has led to more demonstrations and public outrage.

KDP Criticism

A State Department cable leaked by Wikileaks noted that “The KDP consists of family clans, operating very much like a mafia organization. For example, Massoud Barzani’s uncle is Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari, his nephew/son-in-law is KRG Prime Minister Nechirvan Barzani and his son Masrur is Head of KRG’s Intelligence Directorate”.

The KDP has historically maintained a broad base of political allegiances, acting as a big tent party ranging from tribal conservatives to socialists. Today the party is regarded as populist and nationalist.

PUK: Patriotic Union of Kurdistan

The Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) is a leftist Iraqi-Kurdish political party that splintered from the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) in the mid 1970’s after the KDP’s Mustafa Barzani-led Peshmerga was defeated by the Iraqi Army led by Saddam Hussein. The PUK is said to have been founded by Jalal Talabani, Nawshirwan Mustafa, Ali Askari, Fuad Masum and others.

Left-Leaning Intellectuals

The PUK founders were the intellectuals and academics of the KDP who had a more left-leaning, democratic, socialist political philosophy. The KDP was more traditional, conservative and tribal in their political philosophy and constituency.

hen the Barzani-led Peshmerga was defeated, Barzani took the KDP into exile in Iran.  Talibani and his colleagues formed the new PUK party to fill that vacuum and provide leadership for Iraqi Kurdistan. At it’s founding, the PUK was an umbrella group for various leftist organizations in Iraqi Kurdistan. The PUK’s constituency comes from the southern part of Iraqi Kurdistan centered in Sulaymaniyah.

Civil War with KDP

Almost from its’ founding, the PUK was at odds with the KDP who, even though they were exiled in Iran, objected to the way the PUK was conducting its resistance to the Iraqi army. Eventually, the KDP re-emerged in Kurdistan and during the 1980’s Iran-Iraq War, they put aside their differences to gain autonomy and defend against the genocide campaign.

After the 1990-1991 Gulf War, the Coalition Forces implemented a no-fly zone in Kurdistan which protected them from Iraqi Air Force and allowed them to maintain their autonomy.

Unfortunately, due to clashes between the KDP and PUK in how to administer the government and oil resources, a civil war erupted and lasted till 1998 when the Washington Agreement was signed by Masoud Barzani and Jalal Talabani.

KDP and PUK controlled areas after 1998 Washington Agreement.

Power Sharing and Gorran

Since peace was instituted and has held, there’s been elections in 2005 and 2009 in which the KDP and PUK ran as a united party and shared power and positions.  But in 2009, a new party called the Movement for Change (Gorran) Party, splintered off from the PUK and ran as an anti-corruption and anti-nepotism party and won a surprising number of votes and parliamentary seats (25 out of 100) winning over votes from both the KDP and PUK constituencies.  In 2013, the KDP and PUK ran separately; the KDP won 38 seats and the PUK 18 out of 100 while the Change Party won 24.

Under the new Government, the KDP’s Massoud Barzani is the President, KDP’s Nechirvan Barzani is the Prime Minister, PUK’s Qubad Talibani is the Deputy Prime Minister and Movement for Change‘s Yousif Muhammed is Speaker of the Parliament.