With HTS expanding its control, can Kurds maintain autonomy in parts of Syria? | DW News

The victorious Islamist-led HTS are now in control of most of Syria. Now that they've set up a government in Damascus, they've set their sights on the rest of the country. Much of the northeast is held by the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces while the Turkish-backed group calling itself the Syrian National Army controls much of the territory along the northern border.
Syria's Kurds had been hoping for autonomy or self-rule – but the HTS's advances has people there fearing the worst.

For more on this, we are joined in the studio by Guido Steinberg. He is a Middle East analyst and International Terrorism expert from the German Institute for International & Security Affairs.

We also have Joost Hiltermann on the program, Director of the Middle East and North Africa program at the International Crisis Group. He joins us from New Haven in Connecticut.

Henri Barkey is a Senior Fellow for Middle East studies at the Council on Foreign Relations and Cohen Professor of International Relations at Lehigh University in Pennsylvania.

And we talk to Middle East expert Bente Scheller of the Heinrich-Böll-Foundation.

00:00 Kurds in Syria
04:41 Studio talk with Guido Steinberg
11:00 Interview with Joost Hiltermann
15:45 Interview with Henri Barkey
21:04 Interview with Bente Scheller

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[michaelmish]

The Kurds deserve a home where they are not persecuted.
Based on the responses to my comment I did not realize how much animosity there was towards Kurds. I now hope even more that they have some autonomy, otherwise they are clearly subject to prejudice.

[jinankalo]

Everyone interviewed, but Kurds and Syrians.

[tengrici]

the kurds betrayed the syrian people by fighting alongside with assad. normally the arabs could take revenge but they do not have any intentions. however, i think the kurds will retreat from the areas they occupied like raqqa, haseke etc.
there are more kurds in germany then in syria. give them land in germany.

[divinejusticefeelsgood]

DW covers kurds everyday. They love them so much. Why don't you give them bavaria

[RalphDavis-qkxy]

The Kurds need an independent state. They fought for it, they died for it, they have earned it.

[XY-uctw]

The Kurds are only a small minority in Syria, about 10%, but with the great help of the USA they currently control almost all the oil fields, %45 gas reserves and a third of the country!
Historically, the Kurds have never had a majority in these areas...

[Amjad_Kharma]

Why are they not talking about how the Kurds are doing mass executions???
They have been killing protesters who are against their rule in Raqa and other major cities, these protesters support the rebels by the way. They should also mention that the areas they rule they are not the majority in them, there are Assyrians, Arabs, Armenians and many others.
Should we give all minorities sovereignty?

[GokhanTurkyilmaz-iy]

Give Germany as much land as Bavaria for 3 million Turks in Germany

[Agirparez]

While the Kurds were fighting bravely against ISIS in Syria, where were the organizations trying to cause chaos? And why then "didn't they want the Kurds in Syria?"

[SalarNYousif]

As a kurd, it truly saddens me to see that the shift in support from the colletive west has become the way it is. During the reign of isis, the most reliable and trustworthy force against isis across syria and iraq were the kurds, yet we got abandoned the instant the isis threat was eliminated (at least for the past 5 years it has been), the US sees it fit to abandon a key and loyal ally in such a sensitive region.

[ioanpena]

Kurds are not fundamentalist and religion is not involved in politics...also women have a lot of rights in Kurdish society to the point that they are allowed to fight in the army if they choose so ...

[dalshadabdo]

We the Kurds, sacrificed and fought a lot and will continue until our independence.

[TCALIbear]

Love from the 🇺🇸 to our Kurdish brothers and sisters! Prayers! God Bless!

[eidan]

The Kurds have consistently acted with integrity, treating all people equally, protecting women and minorities, and standing as a bulwark of humanity against extremism. However, when it comes to international diplomacy, the U.S. and Europe often disregard these contributions. Their current priority is fostering relations with Erdoğan to secure their interests in Syria, sidelining the Kurds in the process. Despite being the only community in the Middle East that upholds democratic values, the Kurds find themselves isolated. Meanwhile, the West seems driven solely by profit, willing to betray the Kurds and, at times, even cooperate with forces like ISIS to serve their agendas.

[LeeSohlden]

The Kurds, with US air power, beat ISIS. Anyone who attacks the Kurds at this point, is just as bad as ISIS. The Kurds are the heros in the situation - please acknowledge this, first of all.

[Axel-eldu]

Steinberg naming just the PKK is kind of crazy considering the ''kurds'' are many different militias working together to defend and protect Minorities in both Syria and Iraq. After all they proved vital in (mostly) defeating Daesh.

[AK-owzn]

Kurdisrtan should no longer be a dream, it should be a reality. Them and the Palestinians deserve a state.

[liam]

Calling Rojava straight up authoritarian in light of the institutions and ideologies they've build in Syria is ridiculous. Especially when you compare them to other forces in the region, they have mechanisms for bottom up control which are totally unheard of. Additionally, the status of women in their territory is much better than nearly any other place in the middle east. This Guido Steinberg guy seems like a clown.

[paekman]

Will the US abandon the Kurds as so often they have done in the past?

[louistan]

How much do Germans know about the Kurds and the history of the region? Don't ask Google and Wikipedia.