Syrian Kurds ‘should defend their land’, PKK says

On Tuesday, the fragile ceasefire between Turkey and Kurdish-led forces in northern Syria is due to expire, three weeks after Ankara launched a cross-border offensive.

Turkey said it was aiming to set up a “safe zone” clear of Kurdish fighters on the Syrian side of the border. It agreed to halt its operation if they withdrew from areas close to the Turkish border – some of which Turkey is now occupying.

The Syrian Kurdish forces were key US allies against the Islamic State group. But Turkey considers them an extension of the PKK, the Kurdistan Workers Party – a political and militant organisation which has, for decades, fought Turkey for a Kurdish homeland. It is listed as a terrorist organisation by Turkey, the EU and US.

The BBC’s Aleem Maqbool went to meet a PKK official to hear the group’s response to the recent fighting in Syria.

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