QAMISHLI, Syria: Thousands of women rallied in the northeastern Syrian city of Qamishli on Monday to demand the new Islamist rulers in Damascus respect women鈥檚 rights and to condemn Turkish-backed military campaigns in Kurdish-led regions of the north.
Many of the protesters waved the green flag of the Women鈥檚 Protection Units (YPJ), an affiliate of the Kurdish People鈥檚 Protection Units militia (YPG) that Turkiye deems a national security threat and wants disbanded immediately.
鈥淲e are demanding women鈥檚 rights from the new state ... and women must not be excluded from rights in this system,鈥� said Sawsan Hussein, a women鈥檚 rights activist.
鈥淲e are (also) condemning the attacks of the Turkish occupation against the city of Kobani.鈥�
Kurdish groups have enjoyed autonomy across much of the north since Syria鈥檚 civil war began in 2011. The Kurdish YPG militia, which leads the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) armed group, is a major force in the area.
But Syria鈥檚 power balance has shifted away from these groups since the Islamist Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham group (HTS) swept into Damascus and toppled Bashar Assad two weeks ago, establishing a new administration friendly to Ankara.
Syria鈥檚 dominant Kurdish groups embrace an ideology emphasising socialism and feminism 鈥� in contrast to the conservative Sunni Islamist views of HTS, a former Al-Qaeda affiliate.
Turkiye views the YPG as an extension of the Kurdistan Workers鈥� Party (PKK), which has been waging an insurgency against the Turkish state since 1984 and is deemed a terrorist group by Turkiye, the United States and the European Union.
Hostilities between the SDF and a Turkiye-backed Syrian force known as the Syrian National Army have escalated since Assad was ousted, with the SDF driven out of the northern city of Manbij.
Syrian Kurdish leaders have warned that Turkish forces are mobilizing for an offensive on the SDF-controlled city of Kobani at the Turkish border, also known as Ayn Al-Arab.
There is widespread apprehension among Syrians that the new Damascus administration will gravitate toward hard-line Islamist rule, marginalizing minorities and women from public life.
Obaida Arnout, a spokesperson for the Syrian transitional government, said last week that women鈥檚 鈥渂iological and physiological nature鈥� rendered them unfit for certain governmental jobs.
Hemrin Ali, an official in the Kurdish-led administration of northeastern Syria, told Reuters at Monday鈥檚 rally: 鈥淵es to supporting the YPJ. Yes to preserving the rights and gains of the women鈥檚 revolution in northern and eastern Syria.鈥�