Iraq
102-457: Iraqi Civil War Nalîn Dêrik Sozdar Dêrik Serhildan Garisî Foreign intervention in behalf of Syrian rebels U.S.-led intervention against ISIL 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 The People's Defense Units ( YPG ), also called People's Protection Units , is a Kurdish militant group in Syria and the primary component of
204-503: A major offensive north-east of Mosul against Kurdish position but were repelled. Starting December 22, the Iraqi Army began a campaign to recapture Ramadi . On December 28, Iraq declared Ramadi liberated from ISIL forces and under the control of the Iraqi government. Iraqi armed forces regained control of Hīt and Ar-Rutbah in offensive operations in 2016 and then Fallujah as well in
306-451: A $ 3.5 billion U.S.-led program to rearm the Iraqi security forces , a U.S.-led training program that provided training to nearly 200,000 Iraqi soldiers and police, the participation of the military of Iran , including troops as well as armored and air elements, and military and logistical aid provided to Iraq by Russia. On 9 December 2017, Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi announced victory over
408-526: A coup d'état in 1963 . For several years, Syria went through additional coups and changes in leadership, until in March 1971, General Hafez al-Assad , an Alawite , declared himself President . It marked the beginning of the domination of personality cults centred around the Assad dynasty that pervaded all aspects of Syrian daily life and was accompanied by a systematic suppression of civil and political freedoms, becoming
510-695: A day after seizing the border crossing at Al-Qaim . According to analysts, capturing these crossings could aid ISIL in transporting weapons and equipment to different battlefields. Two days later, the Syrian Air Force bombed ISIL positions in Iraq near the Al-Qaim border post. Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki stated: "There was no coordination involved, but we welcome this action. We welcome any Syrian strike against Isis because this group targets both Iraq and Syria." At this point, The Jerusalem Post reported that
612-630: A former military commander in Mosul, accused al-Maliki of being the one who issued the order to withdraw from the city of Mosul. At its height, ISIL held 56,000 square kilometers of Iraqi territory, containing 4.5 million citizens. The war resulted in the forced resignation of al-Maliki in 2014, as well as an airstrike campaign by the United States and a dozen other countries in support of the Iraqi military , participation of American and Canadian troops (predominantly special forces) in ground combat operations,
714-465: A full-blown civil war. Rebel forces, receiving arms from NATO and Gulf Cooperation Council states, initially made significant advances against the government forces, who were receiving arms from Iran and Russia . Rebels captured the regional capitals of Raqqa in 2013 and Idlib in 2015. Consequently, Russia launched a military intervention in support of the government in September 2015, shifting
816-700: A major rebel offensive in the northwest led by Tahrir al-Sham in November 2024, in which the second-largest city Aleppo was seized . In March 2011, popular discontent with the Ba'athist government led to large-scale protests and pro-democracy rallies across Syria, as part of the wider Arab Spring protests in the region. Numerous protests were violently suppressed by security forces in deadly crackdowns ordered by Bashar al-Assad, resulting in tens of thousands of deaths and detentions , many of whom were civilians. The Syrian revolution transformed into an insurgency with
918-472: A mass migration of farming families to urban centers. This migration strained infrastructure already burdened by the influx of some 1.5 million refugees from the Iraq War . The drought has been linked to anthropogenic global warming . Subsequent analysis, however, has challenged the narrative of the drought as a major contributor to the start of the war. Adequate water supply continues to be an issue in
1020-469: A political settlement have gone nowhere, leaving the Assad regime firmly in power. The U.S. Council on Foreign Relations said: The war whose brutality once dominated headlines has settled into an uncomfortable stalemate. Hopes for regime change have largely died out, peace talks have been fruitless, and some regional governments are reconsidering their opposition to engaging with Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad. The government has regained control of most of
1122-486: A political turn, with Arab fans raising pictures of Saddam Hussein while the Kurdish fans reportedly proclaimed "We will sacrifice our lives for Bush". This resulted in clashes between the two groups who attacked each other with sticks, stones and knives. Government security forces entered the city to quell the riot, firing at the crowds. The riots resulted in around 36 dead, most of them Kurds. They did not, however, emerge as
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#17330558436141224-403: A result, an estimated 180,000 civilians (including refugees of the previous Anbar offensive) attempted to flee the area. Later that month, Operation Ashura was launched by Iraqi forces and Iranian-backed Shia militias, scoring a major victory and retaking the strategic town of Jurf al-Sakhar near Baghdad, and securing the way for millions of Shia pilgrims who were going to Karbala and Najaf On
1326-963: A significant force until the Syrian civil war erupted in 2011. The self-defence committees that were to become the YPG were formed in July and August 2011 as the Self Protection units (YXG). Existing underground Kurdish political parties, the Democratic Union Party (PYD) and the Kurdish National Council (KNC), joined to form the Kurdish Supreme Committee (KSC) and established the People's Protection Units (YPG) militia to defend Kurdish-inhabited areas in northern Syria, i.e. Syrian Kurdistan and
1428-412: A stalemate, by early 2023. The United States Institute of Peace said: Twelve years into Syria's devastating civil war, the conflict appears to have settled into a frozen state. Although roughly 30% of the country is controlled by opposition forces, heavy fighting has largely ceased and there is a growing regional trend toward normalizing relations with the regime of Bashar al-Assad. Over the last decade,
1530-532: A threat. Violence in the war peaked during 2012–2017, but the situation remains a crisis. By 2020, the Syrian government controlled about two-thirds of the country and was consolidating power. Frontline fighting between the Assad government and opposition groups had mostly subsided by 2023, but there had been regular flareups in northwestern Syria and large-scale protests emerged in southern Syria and spread nationwide in response to extensive autocratic policies and
1632-468: A truck bomb in a crowded marketplace in Sadr City , Baghdad , killing at least 75 people and injuring 212 more. On 27 August, a suicide bomber assassinated General Abdel Rahman Abu Ragheef, deputy commander of operations in the province of Anbar, and Brigadier Safeen Abdel Majeed, a divisional commander. ISIL forces lost Sinjar on November 13 to Kurdish forces. During 16–17 December, ISIL forces mounted
1734-621: Is autonomy. Although operating under an overarching tactical rubric, YPG brigades are inculcated with a high degree of freedom and can adapt to the changing battlefield. The YPG relies heavily on snipers and backs them by suppressing enemy fire using mobile heavy machine guns. It also uses roadside bombs to prevent outflanking maneuvers, particularly at night. Its lines have generally held when attacked by Islamic State (IS) forces who have better equipment, including helmets and body armor. The YPG and People's Defense Forces (HPG) have also trained and equipped more than 1,000 Yazidis , who operate in
1836-562: Is that Euphrates Volcano was limited to coordinating the activities of independent Kurdish and Arab groups, while the SDF is a single organisation made up of Kurds, Arabs, and Assyrians . The first success of the SDF was the capture of the strategic ethnically Arab town of al-Hawl from IS during the al-Hawl offensive in November 2015. This was followed in December by the Tishrin Dam offensive . The dam
1938-739: Is unfolding in Sinjar." In addition, during this latest offensive, the Islamic State advanced to within 30 km of the Iraqi Kurdish capital of Erbil in northern Iraq. Prompted by the siege and killings of the Yazidis, on 7 August, President Obama authorized targeted airstrikes in Iraq against ISIL , along with airdrops of aid. The UK offered the US assistance with surveillance and refueling, and planned humanitarian airdrops to Iraqi refugees. The US asserted that
2040-594: The 2023 Ankara bombing , which the Turkish government alleges was carried out by attackers originating from Northeastern Syria. On 27 November 2024, it was reported that in a sudden offensive in Northwestern Syria , rebels seized 13 villages, including the strategic towns of Urm Al-Sughra and Anjara, as well as Base 46, the largest Syrian regime base in the region. On 28 November it was reported that Russian and Syrian warplanes were bombing rebel positions in response to
2142-497: The Battle of Raqqa , the Islamic State was territorially defeated by late 2017. In August 2016, Turkey launched a multi-pronged invasion of northern Syria , in response to the creation of Rojava , while also fighting the Islamic State and government forces in the process. Between the March 2020 Idlib ceasefire and late 2024, frontline fighting mostly subsided, but was characterized by regular skirmishes. Heavy fighting renewed with
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#17330558436142244-521: The Day of Ashura . Kurdish forces, meanwhile, recaptured Zummar . On 21 October, ISIL seized terrain north of the Sinjar Mountains, thus cutting the area's escape route to Kurdish areas. The Yazidi militias then withdrew from there into the mountains, where the number of Yazidi civilian refugees was estimated at 2,000–7,000. The mountains had once again been partially surrounded by ISIL. In mid-November,
2346-576: The Free Syrian Army and IS in January 2014. The YPG collaborated with FSA groups to fight IS in Raqqa province; the group also formed an operations room with multiple FSA factions, called Euphrates Volcano . However, the general outcome of this campaign was a massive advance by IS, which effectively separated the eastern part of Rojava from the main force of FSA rebels. IS followed up on its success by attacking
2448-474: The Iran–Iraq–Syria pipeline . Syrian president Bashar al-Assad declined Qatar's year 2000 proposal to build a $ 10 billion Qatar–Turkey pipeline through Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Syria and Turkey, allegedly prompting covert CIA operations to spark a Syrian civil war to pressure Bashar al-Assad to resign and allow a pro-American president to step in and sign off on the deal. Leaked documents have shown that in 2009,
2550-400: The Iraqi army retook control of most of the strategic city Baiji from the Islamic State and broke the siege of the nearby oil refinery. However, by the following month, ISIL recaptured Baiji and reestablished the siege of the refinery. On 17 December, Peshmerga forces, backed by 50 US-led coalition airstrikes on ISIL positions, launched an offensive to liberate Sinjar and to break
2652-519: The Mosul offensive (2015) in which Peshmerga forces captured large amount of territory surrounding Mosul . On 2 March, the Second Battle of Tikrit began and after more than a month of hard fighting, Iraqi government troops and pro-Iranian Shiite militias overcame ISIL fighters and took Tikrit. Shia groups claimed that they had killed Izzat Ibrahim al-Douri but this was later debunked This success
2754-535: The Mount Sinjar area as local defense units under their supervision. The YPG calls itself a people's army, and therefore appoints officers by internal elections. A 20-year-old female YPJ fighter named Zlukh Hamo (Nom de guerre: Avesta Khabur) was reported to have carried out a suicide attack towards Turkish troops and a tank during the early phase of the Afrin Offensive , killing herself and several soldiers in
2856-586: The Muslim Brotherhood and the ulama . Assad regime violently crushed the Islamic revolts that occurred during 1976–1982, waged by revolutionaries from the Syrian Muslim Brotherhood . The Ba'ath party carefully constructed Assad as the guiding father figure of the party and modern Syrian nation, advocating the continuation of Assad dynastic rule of Syria. As part of the publicity efforts to brand
2958-562: The Obama administration had requested US$ 500 million from the US Congress to use in the training and arming of "moderate" Syrian rebels fighting against the Syrian government, in order to counter the growing threat posed by ISIL in Syria and Iraq. On 29 June, ISIL announced the establishment of a new caliphate . Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi was appointed its caliph , and group formally changed its name to
3060-599: The President of Kurdistan Region in the federal Kurdistan Region of Iraq . Assyrian forces included: Nineveh Plain Protection Units , Nineveh Plain Forces , Babylon Brigades , Kataib Rouh Allah Issa Ibn Miriam , Qaraqosh Protection Committee and Dwekh Nawsha . In the course of their Anbar campaign , ISIL militants and their baathist allies seized at least 70% of Al Anbar Governorate by June 2014, including
3162-661: The Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF). YPG provides updates about its activities through YPG Press Office Telegram channel and social media accounts. The YPG mostly consists of Kurds , but also includes Arabs and foreign volunteers ; it is closely allied to the Syriac Military Council , an Assyrian militia. The YPG was formed in 2011. It expanded rapidly in the Syrian Civil War and came to predominate over other armed Syrian Kurdish groups. A sister militia,
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3264-605: The Syrian National Army and allied Free Syrian militias ). Another opposition faction is the Syrian Salvation Government , whose armed forces are represented by a coalition of Sunni militias led by Tahrir al-Sham . Independent of them is the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria , whose military force is the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), a multi-ethnic, Arab-majority force led by
3366-594: The Third Battle of Fallujah ending in June 2016. On 16 October 2016, the Battle of Mosul began. Syrian civil war Total deaths 580,000 –617,910+ Civilian deaths 219,223–306,887+ Displaced people Foreign intervention in behalf of Syrian rebels U.S.-led intervention against ISIL The Syrian civil war is an ongoing multi-sided conflict in Syria involving various state-sponsored and non-state actors . In March 2011, popular discontent with
3468-563: The Women's Protection Units (YPJ), fights alongside them. The YPG is active in the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (Rojava), particularly in its Kurdish regions . In early 2015, the group won a major victory over the Islamic State (IS) during the siege of Kobanî , where the YPG began to receive air and ground support from the United States and other Combined Joint Task Force – Operation Inherent Resolve militaries. Since then,
3570-675: The al-Shaddadi offensive , followed by the Manbij offensive in May, and the Raqqa and Aleppo offensives in November. These operations extended SDF-controlled territory, usually at IS's expense. On 7 April 2016, the Kurdish neighborhood of Sheikh Maqsood in Aleppo was shelled with mortars that may have contained chemical agents (160 killed or wounded). Spokesperson for the YPG said that Saudi Arabia -backed Jaysh al-Islam (Army of Islam) rebel group has attacked
3672-446: The conquest of Tell Abyad , linking up Kobanî with Hasakah in July 2015. With the capture of Tell Abyad, the YPG has also broken a major supply route of fighters and goods for the Islamic State. With these offensives, the YPG had begun to make advances into areas that did not always have a Kurdish majority. When the YPG and the FSA entered the border town of Tell Abyad in June 2015, parts of
3774-403: The 2000 Damascus Spring , Bashar al-Assad was widely reported as having failed to implement any improvements. In 2010, he imposed a controversial national ban on female Islamic dress codes (such as face veils ) across universities, where reportedly over a thousand primary school teachers that wore the niqab were reassigned to administrative jobs. A Human Rights Watch report issued just before
3876-710: The Autonomous Administration's Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF). Turkish forces currently occupy parts of northern Syria and, since 2016, have fought the SDF, IS and the Assad government while actively supporting the Syrian National Army (SNA). Between 2011 and 2017, fighting from the Syrian civil war spilled over into Lebanon as opponents and supporters of the Syrian government traveled to Lebanon to fight and attack each other on Lebanese soil. While officially neutral, Israel has exchanged border fire and conducted repeated strikes against Hezbollah and Iranian forces , whose presence in western Syria it views as
3978-839: The CIA began funding and supporting opposition groups in Syria to foment a civil war. Harvard Professor Mitchell A Orenstein and George Romer stated that this pipeline feud is the true motivation behind Russia entering the war in support of Bashar al-Assad, supporting his rejection of the Qatar-Turkey pipeline and hoping to pave the way for the Iran-Iraq-Syria pipeline which would bolster Russia's allies and stimulate Iran's economy. The U.S. military has set up bases near gas pipelines in Syria, purportedly to fight ISIS but perhaps also to defend their own natural gas assets, which have been allegedly targeted by Iranian militias. The Conoco gas fields have been
4080-646: The FSA and IS had led to a normalization in the relations between FSA and YPG since the end of 2013. In February 2015, the YPG signed a judicial agreement with the Levant Front in Aleppo . The YPG was able and willing to offensively engage and put pressure on IS and had built up a track record as a reliable military partner of the US. In 2015, the YPG began its advance on Tel Abyad , a move they have planned for since November 2013. With American close air support, offensives near Hasakah and from Hasakah westward culminated in
4182-545: The Islamic State, AFVs left behind by the Syrian Arab Army (SyAA), equipment turned over by the SyAA in exchange for a safe passage (for example, after retreating from Mennagh airbase in 2014), and armoured vehicles donated by the US for light armoured vehicles and true armour. While other Syrian Civil War factions, such as the Islamic State , amassed an arsenal of hundreds of tanks and other armored fighting vehicles captured from
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4284-528: The Islamic State. The Islamic State switched to guerrilla "hit and run" tactics in an effort to undermine the Iraqi government's effort to eradicate it. This conflict is interpreted by some in Iraq as a spillover of the Syrian Civil War . Other Iraqis and observers see it mainly as a culmination of long-running local sectarianism, exacerbated by the 2003–2011 Iraq War , the subsequent increase in anti-Sunni sectarianism under Prime Minister al-Maliki, and
4386-505: The Islamic State. Four days later, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the self-proclaimed caliph of the new Islamic State, said that Muslims should unite to capture Rome in order to "own the world." He called on Muslims all over the world to unite behind him as their leader. On 24 July, ISIL blew up the Mosque and tomb of the Prophet Yunus (Jonah) in Mosul, with no reported casualties. Residents in
4488-420: The Islamic State. Between 4–9 June 2014, the city of Mosul was attacked and later fell ; following this, Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki called for a national state of emergency on 10 June. However, despite the security crisis, Iraq's parliament did not allow Maliki to declare a state of emergency; many legislators boycotted the session because they opposed expanding the prime minister's powers. Ali Ghaidan,
4590-523: The Kurdish YPG. Other competing factions include Jihadist organizations such as the al-Qaeda-branch Hurras al-Din (successor of Al-Nusra Front ) and the Islamic State (IS). A number of foreign countries, such as Iran , Russia , Turkey and the United States , have been directly involved in the civil war , providing support to opposing factions in the conflict. Iran, Russia and Hezbollah support
4692-562: The Kurdish enclave of Sheikh Maqsood in Aleppo . Originally a wholly Kurdish force, the YPG began to recruit Arabs from at least 2012. In July 2012, the YPG had a standoff with Syrian government forces in the Kurdish city of Kobanî and the surrounding areas. After negotiations, government forces withdrew and the YPG took control of Kobanî , Amuda , and Afrin . By December 2012, it had expanded to eight brigades , which were formed in Qamishlo , Kobanî, and Ras al-Ayn (Serê Kaniyê), and in
4794-452: The Kurdish neighborhood of Aleppo with "forbidden weapons" many times since the war's start. The Women's Protection Units (YPJ), also known as the Women's Defense Units, is the YPG's female brigade, which was set up in 2012. Kurdish media have said that YPJ troops became vital during the siege of Kobanî . Consisting of approximately 20,000 fighters, they make up around 40% of the YPG. In 2017,
4896-567: The Mosul Dam. On 31 August, the United States, France, United Kingdom and Australia began humanitarian aid drops of food, water and medical supplies to help prevent a potential massacre against the Shia Turkmen minority in Amirli. The US also carried out air strikes on ISIL positions around and near Amirli. Iraqi officials stated that they had reached Amirli and broken the siege and that the military
4998-460: The Syrian Arab Army, the YPG, which frequently avoided combat with government forces, had to make do with scraps. The YPG was able to acquire several vehicle types, including the BTR-60 and BRDM-2 , that had been abandoned in government bases by their previous owners. With no other option, even these abandoned vehicles would be repaired and repurposed by the YPG. Even when the engine couldn't be repaired,
5100-550: The Syrian Arab Republic militarily, with Russia conducting airstrikes and ground operations in the country since September 2015. Since 2014, the U.S.-led international coalition has been conducting air and ground operations primarily against the Islamic State and occasionally against pro-Assad forces , and has been militarily and logistically supporting factions such as the Revolutionary Commando Army and
5202-463: The U.S.-led coalition —of severe human rights violations and massacres . The conflict has caused a major refugee crisis , with millions of people fleeing to neighboring countries such as Turkey, Lebanon and Jordan ; however, a sizable minority has also sought refuge in countries outside of the Middle East, with Germany alone accepting over half a million Syrians since 2011. Over the course of
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#17330558436145304-533: The YPG and the FSA in Kobanî Canton in March and fighting its way to the gates of the city of Kobanî in September. The actual siege of Kobanî approximately coincided with an escalation in the American-led intervention in Syria . This intervention had started with aiding the FSA against the government, but when the FSA was getting defeated by IS in eastern Syria, it escalated to bombing IS on Syrian territory. With
5406-548: The YPG as the "most effective" force in fighting IS in Syria. According to Turkey and Qatar, the YPG is a terrorist organization, closely associated with the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), which is listed as a terrorist organization. The flag of the YPG is also a banned symbol in Germany as per Strafgesetzbuch section 86a , although the organization itself is not recognised as terrorist. Finland and Sweden's alleged support for
5508-493: The YPG began to form units called regiments in translation, though they are smaller than comparable units in standard militaries: According to a report in IHS Jane's regarding the YPG, Relying on speed, stealth, and surprise, it is the archetypal guerrilla army, able to deploy quickly to front lines and concentrate its forces before quickly redirecting the axis of its attack to outflank and ambush its enemy. The key to its success
5610-437: The YPG conquered the surrounding government-controlled areas: al-Darbasiyah (Kurdish: Dirbêsî), Tel Tamer and al-Malikiyah (Kurdish: Dêrika Hemko). The subsequent Battle of Ras al-Ayn started in earnest when on 19 November 2012, the al-Nusra Front and a second al-Qaeda affiliate, Ghuraba al-Sham , attacked Kurdish positions in the town. The battle ended with a YPG victory in July 2013. While many rebel groups clashed with
5712-499: The YPG has primarily fought against IS, as well as on occasion fighting other Syrian rebel groups and the Turkish Armed Forces . In late 2015, the YPG became part of the SDF, an umbrella group intended to better incorporate Arabs and minorities into the war effort. In 2016–2017, the SDF's Raqqa campaign led to the liberation of the city of Raqqa , the Islamic State's de facto capital. Several western sources have described
5814-582: The YPG to unite the Syrian Kurds under its banner and caused it to become the de facto army of the Syrian Kurds. In October 2013, YPG fighters took control of al-Yaarubiyah (Til Koçer) following intense clashes with IS. The clashes lasted about three days, with the Til Koçer border gate to Iraq being taken in a major offensive launched on the night of 24 October. PYD leader Salih Muslim told Stêrk TV that this success created an alternative against efforts to hold
5916-410: The YPG, jihadist and Salafist groups did so the most often. The YPG proved to be the only Kurdish militia able to effectively resist the fundamentalists. While the YPG protected the Kurdish communities it was able to extract a price: it prevented the emergence of new, rival militias and forced existing ones to cooperate with or join the YPG forces on its terms. This was how the Islamist attacks enabled
6018-406: The YPG, is one of the points which caused Turkey to oppose Finland and Sweden's NATO accession bid . In June 2022, then–Finnish President Sauli Niinistö announced in Madrid , after the agreement with Turkey, that Finland does not see the YPG as a terrorist organization and that Finland will continue to support the YPG. The Turkish terror classification is not shared by key international bodies in
6120-1209: The YPG. Iraqi Civil War (2014%E2%80%932017) [REDACTED] Kurdistan Regional Government Allied groups: Others: [REDACTED] Iran [REDACTED] Hezbollah [REDACTED] Syria [REDACTED] CJTF–OIR [REDACTED] Islamic State [REDACTED] Haider al-Abadi [REDACTED] Nouri al-Maliki [REDACTED] Iraqi security forces 600,000 (300,000 Army and 300,000 Police ) Popular Mobilization Forces : 60,000–90,000 Awakening Council militias: 30,000 Contractors : 7,000 [REDACTED] Peshmerga: 200,000 [REDACTED] Islamic State : [REDACTED] Iraqi security forces and militias : 19,000+ killed and 29,000+ wounded [REDACTED] Peshmerga : 1,837 killed 10,546 wounded 62 missing or captured [REDACTED] Kurdistan Workers' Party : 180 killed (2014–Jan. 2016) [REDACTED] IRGC : 43 killed Liwa Zainebiyoun : 3 killed [REDACTED] CJTF–OIR : Major insurgent attacks Foreign interventions IS genocide of minorities IS war crimes Timeline The War in Iraq (2013–2017)
6222-446: The administrative center of the Salahuddin Governorate, with the ultimate goal of capturing Baghdad , the Iraqi capital. ISIL was believed to have only 2,000–3,000 fighters up until the Mosul campaign, but during that campaign, it became evident that this number was a gross underestimate. There were also reports that the number of Sunni groups in Iraq that were opposed to the predominantly Shia government had joined ISIL, thus bolstering
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#17330558436146324-477: The area said that ISIL had erased a piece of Iraqi heritage. Jonah's tomb was an important holy site in the Jewish heritage as well. A few days later, ISIL also blew up the Nabi Shiyt (Prophet Seth ) shrine in Mosul . Sami al-Massoudi, deputy head of the Shia endowment agency which oversees holy sites, confirmed the destruction and added that ISIL had taken artifacts from the shrine to an unknown location. In an August offensive , ISIL captured Sinjar after it
6426-433: The balance of the conflict. By late 2018, all rebel strongholds except parts of Idlib region had fallen to the government forces. In 2014, the Islamic State group seized control of large parts of Eastern Syria and Western Iraq , prompting the U.S. -led CJTF coalition to launch an aerial bombing campaign against it, while providing ground support to the Kurdish -majority Syrian Democratic Forces . Culminating in
6528-477: The beginning of the 2011 uprising stated that Assad had failed to substantially improve the state of human rights since taking power. The United States and its allies intended to build the Qatar–Turkey pipeline which would relieve Europe of its dependence on Russian natural gas, especially during winter months where many European homes rely on Russia to survive the winter. On the contrary, Russia and its allies intended to stop this planned pipeline and instead build
6630-428: The central feature of state propaganda. Authority in Ba'athist Syria is monopolised by three power-centres: Alawite loyalist clans, Ba'ath party and the armed forces ; glued together by unwavering allegiance towards the Assad dynasty . The Syrian Regional Branch remained the dominant political authority in what had been a one-party state until the first multi-party election to the People's Council of Syria
6732-477: The cities of Fallujah , Al Qaim , and half of the provincial capital of Ramadi . ISIL forces also infiltrated Abu Ghraib in Baghdad Governorate . In early June 2014, following further large-scale offensives in Iraq , ISIL and their allies seized control of Mosul , the second most populous city in Iraq, the nearby town of Tal Afar and most of the surrounding Nineveh Governorate . ISIL also captured parts of Kirkuk and Diyala Governorates and Tikrit ,
6834-443: The civil society groups, political reformists and democratic activists that emerged during the Damascus spring in the 2000s. Bashar Al-Assad claims that no 'moderate opposition' to his government exists, and that all opposition forces are Islamists focused on destroying his secular leadership ; his view was that terrorist groups operating in Syria are 'linked to the agendas of foreign countries'. The total population in July 2018
6936-486: The civilian population. Upon Hafez al-Assad's death in 2000, his son Bashar al-Assad succeeded him as the President of Syria . Bashar's wife Asma , a Sunni Muslim born and educated in Britain, was initially hailed in the Western press a "rose in the desert". The couple once raised hopes amongst Syrian intellectuals and outside Western observers as wanting to implement economic and political reforms. However, Bashar failed to deliver on promised reforms, instead crushing
7038-412: The conflict erupted into one of the most complicated in the world, with a dizzying array of international and regional powers, opposition groups, proxies, local militias and extremist groups all playing a role. The Syrian population has been brutalized, with nearly a half a million killed, 12 million fleeing their homes to find safety elsewhere, and widespread poverty and hunger. Meanwhile, efforts to broker
7140-414: The country), Druze 3% and Jewish (few remaining in Damascus and Aleppo). Socioeconomic inequality increased significantly after free market policies were initiated by Hafez al-Assad in his later years, and it accelerated after Bashar al-Assad came to power. With an emphasis on the service sector , these policies benefited a minority of the nation's population, mostly people who had connections with
7242-494: The country, and Assad's hold on power seems secure. In 2023, the main military conflict was not between the Syrian government and rebels, but between Turkish forces and factions within Syria. In late 2023, Turkish forces continued to attack Kurdish forces in the region of Rojava. Starting on 5 October 2023, the Turkish Armed Forces launched a series of air and ground strikes targeting the Syrian Democratic Forces in Northeastern Syria . The airstrikes were launched in response to
7344-400: The districts of Afrin , al-Malikiyah , and al-Bab . The YPG did not initially take an offensive posture in the Syrian Civil War. Aiming mostly to defend Kurdish-majority areas, it avoided engaging Syrian government forces, which still controlled several enclaves in Kurdish territory. The YPG changed this policy when Ras al-Ayn was taken by the al-Qaeda -affiliated al-Nusra Front . At first
7446-479: The economic situation. The protests were noted as resembling the 2011 revolution that preceded the civil war. The war has resulted in an estimated 470,000–610,000 violent deaths, making it the second-deadliest conflict of the 21st century, after the Second Congo War . International organizations have accused virtually all sides involved—the Assad government, IS, opposition groups, Iran, Russia, Turkey, and
7548-547: The end of the month. In addition, Australia offered 200 special forces to the Kurds and 600 Australian troops landed in the UAE. The following month, Australia authorized its special forces troops to go to Iraq as part of the anti-ISIL coalition that day, as well as authorizing airstrikes. In mid-October ISIL forces captured the city of Hīt after the 300-strong Iraqi Army garrison abandoned and set fire to its local base and supplies. As
7650-522: The ensuing bloody crack-down on the 2012–2013 Iraqi protests . The Iraqi Armed Forces , Kurdish Peshmerga and various Turkmen Muslim , Assyrian Christian , Yezidi , Shabaki , and Armenian Christian forces faced the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant . Although some 35,000 Kurdish Peshmerga were incorporated into the Iraqi Armed Forces, most Peshmerga forces operated under the command of
7752-425: The fight against the Islamic State in which the YPG takes part. Due to this Turkish view, US Army Special Operations Commander General Raymond Thomas suggested the YPG to change their name, after which the name of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) was found. Kurdish activists attempted to unify themselves following the 2004 Qamishli riots . The riots began as clashes between rivaling football fans before taking
7854-575: The formation of resistance militias across the country, deteriorating into a full-blown civil war by 2012. The war is fought by several factions. The Syrian Arab Armed Forces , alongside its domestic and foreign allies, represent the Syrian Arab Republic and Assad government. Opposed to it is the Syrian Interim Government , a big-tent alliance of pro-democratic , nationalist opposition groups (whose military forces consist of
7956-458: The government, and members of the Sunni merchant class of Damascus and Aleppo. In 2010, Syria's nominal GDP per capita was only $ 2,834, comparable to Sub-Saharan African countries such as Nigeria and far lower than its neighbors such as Lebanon, with an annual growth rate of 3.39%, below most other developing countries. The country also faced particularly high youth unemployment rates. At the start of
8058-634: The group numbers. However, the Kurds —who are mostly Sunnis—in the northeast of Iraq, were unwilling to be drawn into the conflict, and there were clashes in the area between ISIL and the Kurdish Peshmerga . On 12 June 2014 ISIL killed 1,700 unarmed Iraqi Air Force cadets who were caught trying to flee to safety and released many images of mass executions via its Twitter feed and various websites. In late June, ISIL militants captured two key crossings in Anbar,
8160-501: The hulls of BTR-60s were strapped to the backs of trucks and used as improvised AFVs. With little armor and other heavy weaponry, the YPG relied almost entirely on Coalition airpower to destroy Islamic State vehicles and fighting positions. While this meant that Islamic State-operated AFVs were frequently destroyed before they could inflict serious damage on YPG forces, it also meant that most AFVs were completely obliterated by Coalition aircraft, preventing their capture and further use with
8262-455: The mountain range reached Peshmerga lines, thus linking their two fronts. The next day, the YPG broke through ISIL lines, thus opening a corridor from Syria to the town of Sinjar. By the evening, the Peshmerga took control of much of Sinjar. In late January, the Iraqi armed forces recaptured the entire province of Diyala from the Islamic State. Furthermore, 21 January saw the launching of
8364-461: The nation and Assad dynasty as inseparable; slogans such as "Assad or we burn the country", "Assad or to hell with the country" and "Hafez Assad, forever" became an integral part of the state and party discourse during the 1980s. Eventually the party organisation itself became a rubber stamp and the power structures became deeply dependent on sectarian affiliation to the Assad family and the central role of armed forces needed to crack down on dissent in
8466-470: The offensive. Additionally, Iranian state media said that Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) Brigadier General Kioumars Pourhashemi , a senior Iranian military adviser in Syria, was killed in Aleppo. The following day, rebel forces entered Aleppo, restarting conflict over the city . On 30 November, several more settlements were seized, with the rebels entering Hama . The non-religious Ba'ath Syrian Regional Branch government came to power through
8568-531: The ongoing civil war and it is frequently the target of military action. The human rights situation in Syria has long been the subject of harsh critique from global organizations. The rights of free expression , association and assembly were strictly controlled in Syria even before the uprising. The country was under emergency rule from 1963 until 2011 and public gatherings of more than five people were banned. Security forces had sweeping powers of arrest and detention. Despite hopes for democratic change with
8670-402: The partial ISIL siege of the Sinjar Mountains. In less than two days, the siege was broken. After ISIL forces retreated, Kurdish fighters were initially faced with the clearing out mines around the area, but quickly opened a land corridor to those mountains, enabling Yazidis to be evacuated. The operation left 100 ISIL fighters dead. Later on 21 December, Syrian Kurdish YPG fighters south of
8772-684: The population fled the intense fighting and the airstrikes. The Syrian Democratic Forces was established in Hasakah on 11 October 2015. It has its origins in the YPG-FSA collaboration against IS, which had previously led to the establishment of the Euphrates Volcano joint operations room in 2014. Many of the partners are the same, and even the logo / flag with the Blue Euphrates symbol has common traits with that of Euphrates Volcano. The primary difference
8874-482: The process. The attack was commended by pro-SDF sources as a courageous attack against a tank using explosives, which killed her in the process. In comparison to the other major factions involved in the Syrian Civil War, the YPG has the least armor. To compensate for the resulting capability gap, the YPG became heavily involved in the production of DIY armoured vehicles, typically based on bulldozers or large trucks. The YPG has traditionally relied on vehicles captured from
8976-418: The rule of Bashar al-Assad triggered large-scale protests and pro-democracy rallies across Syria, as part of the wider Arab Spring protests in the region. After months of crackdown by the government's security apparatus, various armed rebel groups such as the Free Syrian Army began forming across the country, marking the beginning of the Syrian insurgency . By mid-2012, the crisis had escalated into
9078-434: The society. Critics of the regime have pointed out that deployment of violence is at the crux of Ba'athist Syria and describe it as "a dictatorship with genocidal tendencies". Hafez ruled Syria for 3 decades with an iron first, using methods ranging from censorship to violent measures of state terror such as mass murders , forced deportations and brutal practices such as torture , which were unleashed collectively upon
9180-503: The systematic destruction of the Yazidi people by the Islamic State was genocide. The Arab League also accused the Islamic State of committing crimes against humanity. On 13 August, US airstrikes and Kurdish ground forces broke the ISIL siege of Mount Sinjar. Also, five days later, Iraqi Special Operations Forces with Kurdish Peshmerga and US air support, overran ISIL militants and reclaimed
9282-512: The territory under embargo, referring to the fact that the other border crossings with Iraq led to areas controlled by the Kurdistan Regional Government , while al-Yaarubiyah led to areas controlled by the Iraqi central government. In 2014, the Syriac Military Council , a group of Assyrian units, was formally integrated into the YPG's command structure. The inter-rebel conflict during the Syrian Civil War led to open war between
9384-698: The war, a number of peace initiatives have been launched, including the March 2017 Geneva peace talks on Syria led by the United Nations , but fighting has continued. In October 2019, Kurdish leaders of Rojava , a region within Syria, announced they had reached a major deal with the government of Syria under Assad. This deal was enacted in the wake of the U.S. withdrawal from Syria. The Kurdish leaders made this deal in order to obtain Syria's help in stopping hostile Turkish forces who were invading Syria and attacking Kurds. The civil war had largely subsided, settling into
9486-420: The war, discontent against the government was strongest in Syria's poor areas, predominantly among conservative Sunnis. These included cities with high poverty rates, such as Daraa and Homs , and the poorer districts of large cities. The unrest coincided with the most intense drought ever recorded in Syria, which lasted from 2006 to 2011 and resulted in widespread crop failure, an increase in food prices and
9588-549: The world fearing another massacre in Kobanî, American support increased substantially. The US gave intense close air support to the YPG, and in doing so, started military cooperation with one of the factions. While it expected that IS would quickly crush the YPG and the FSA, this alliance was not considered a problem for the US. The YPG won the battle in early 2015. Meanwhile, the situation had been stable in Afrin and Aleppo. The fight between
9690-525: Was abandoned by the Peshmerga , and a number of other towns in the north of the country. Almost 200,000 civilians, mostly Yazidis , managed to flee from the fighting in Sinjar city, about 50,000 of them fled into the Sinjar Mountains , where they were trapped without food, water or medical care, facing starvation and dehydration. They had been threatened with death if they refused conversion to Islam. A UN representative said that "a humanitarian tragedy
9792-431: Was an armed conflict between Iraq and its allies and the Islamic State . Following December 2013, the insurgency escalated into full-scale guerrilla warfare following clashes in the cities of Ramadi and Fallujah in parts of western Iraq, and culminated in the Islamic State offensive into Iraq in June 2014, which lead to the capture of the cities of Mosul , Tikrit and other cities in western and northern Iraq by
9894-534: Was captured on 26 December. Participating forces included the YPG, the FSA group Army of Revolutionaries , the tribal group al-Sanadid Forces and the Assyrian Syriac Military Council . The coalition had some heavy weapons and was supported by intense US led airstrikes. The capture of the hydroelectric dam also had positive effects on the economy of Rojava . In February, the YPG-led SDF launched
9996-401: Was estimated at 19,454,263 people; ethnic groups—approximately Arab 50%, Alawite 15%, Kurd 10%, Levantine 10%, other 15% (includes Druze , Ismaili , Imami , Assyrian , Turkmen , Armenian ); religions— Muslim 87% (official; includes Sunni 74% and Alawi, Ismaili and Shia 13%), Christian 10% (mainly of Eastern Christian churches —may be smaller as a result of Christians fleeing
10098-530: Was fighting to clear the areas around the town. This is known to be the first major turning point against ISIL in Iraq . In September, the United States sent an additional 250 troops to protect American personnel, while the first engagement of the British military against ISIL targets took place when a British Panavia Tornado jet dropped a Paveway IV bomb on "a heavy weapon position" operated by ISIL in northwest Iraq at
10200-408: Was held in 2012. On 31 January 1973, Hafez al-Assad implemented a new constitution, leading to a national crisis. The 1973 Constitution entrusted Arab Socialist Baath party with the distinctive role as the "leader of the state and society", empowering it to mobilise the civilians for party programmes, issue decrees to ascertain their loyalty and supervise all legal trade unions. Ba'athist ideology
10302-534: Was imposed upon children as compulsory part of school curriculum and Syrian Armed Forces were tightly controlled to the Party. The constitution removed Islam from being recognised as the state religion and stripped existing provisions such as the president of Syria being required to be a Muslim . These measures caused widespread furore amongst the public, leading to fierce demonstrations in Hama , Homs and Aleppo organized by
10404-461: Was off-set in late May, by ISIL's capture of the provincial capital of Ramadi in Anbar Governorate. On 17 July, a suicide bomber detonated a car bomb in a crowded marketplace in the city of Khan Bani Saad during Eid al-Fitr celebrations, killing 120–130 people and injuring 130 more. Twenty more people were reported missing since the bombing. On 13 August, a suicide bomber detonated
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