Armenian Brigade: We will defend our lands against Turkish aggression

The Martyr Nubar Ozanyan Armenian Brigade, an Armenian self-defense force affiliated to the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) in northern and eastern Syria, has issued a statement on the intensifying attacks by the Turkish state. In its statement, the brigade said that the attacks were targeting all entities in northern and eastern Syria, rather than any particular organization or individual, and declared that it would defend the region.

The statement read: “We condemn and reject the aerial bombardments of the Turkish fascist dictatorship that took place in the past few days, targeting civilian centers and institutions. These attacks and violations inflicted on the cities and countryside of the Cizire and Euphrates regions are crimes against humanity. The attacks of Turkish fascism show and demonstrate the level of enmity and cruelty that is practiced against our people and the whole humanity, as the Ottoman Empire did against the local population in its territory by killing and expelling Armenians, Syrians, Assyrians, Kurds and Arabs”.

In the statement, the brigade also mentioned Azerbaijan’s aggression against Nagorno-Karabakh and the support of the Turkish state with the following assessments: “There is no difference between what the Ottoman Empire did and what Turkish fascism is doing today. The only difference is the name and the form, but the mentality has not changed. This is also the case in Karabakh, where fascism is on the rise. Turkey supports the Azerbaijani dictatorship and is carrying out genocide and new expulsions against the Armenian people”.

As in Serekaniye, Gire Spi and Efrin, people are being displaced and killed and those who remain in their homes are being kidnapped, the self-defense force said, stressing that attacks are taking place on a daily basis. The statement went on to say that, as in Deir ez-Zor, the Turkish state is attempting to divide Arabs and Kurds in order to break the unity between them and spread strife between the different nations living in the region. It stressed the need to be aware of these policies and to maintain unity between different peoples.