Rojava Under Siege: Europe Urged to Defend the Kurds Who Defeated ISIS
As Syria's new HTS-led government attacks Kurdish neighbourhoods in Aleppo, EU parliamentarians call for action to protect the people who helped destroy the Islamic State.
Kurdish communities in Syria face renewed attacks from the new Damascus government led by former al-Qaeda affiliate Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, sparking international outcry and calls for Europe to defend the people who helped defeat ISIS.
The Battle for Aleppo's Kurdish Quarters
On 6 January 2026, Syrian transitional government forces launched an assault on the Kurdish-inhabited Sheikh Maqsood and Ashrafieh neighbourhoods of Aleppo. The offensive, ordered by Syria's new leader Ahmed al-Sharaa (formerly known as Abu Muhammad al-Jolani), aimed to seize control of areas held by the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported that civilians bore the brunt of the violence. Rami Abdulrahman, head of the monitoring group, said the attack's purpose was "the expulsion of the Kurds from Aleppo" and held al-Sharaa personally responsible.
After days of intense fighting, a ceasefire was reached on 10 January, forcing the SDF to withdraw from the neighbourhood to northeastern Syria. A subsequent 14-point agreement, negotiated through US envoy Tom Barrack on 18 January, stipulated the integration of the 100,000-strong SDF into the Syrian Army and the establishment of Syrian government control over Rojava's three provinces.
Europe Watches With Concern
EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, who visited Syria in January alongside European Council President Antonio Costa, described the violence as "worrisome" and said continued dialogue between all parties was "urgently needed."
The EU has pledged substantial support for Syria's transition. At the Brussels IX Conference in March 2025, the EU and partners raised 5.8 billion euros for Syria and neighbouring countries, including 3.37 billion euros from EU member states. Yet critics in the European Parliament argue this aid should be conditional on minority protections.
The EU's Kurdish Friendship Group in the European Parliament has pushed for stronger action. Martin Schirdewan, co-chair of the Left Group, described Rojava as a model deserving support for its democratic values. He condemned the European Commission's silence on Turkey's role in the region as "deafening."
Andreas Schieder from the Austrian Social Democratic Party stressed the obligation to support ethnic groups under attack, particularly Syrian Kurds. The Permanent Peoples' Tribunal is scheduled to present its judgment on "Rojava vs. Turkey" at the European Parliament on 26 March 2026, with speeches expected from Nobel Peace Prize laureates Jody Williams and Shirin Ebadi.
The Kurdish Diaspora Mobilises
Thousands of protesters gathered in Diyarbakir and other Kurdish-majority cities in Turkey to denounce the Syrian government's assault. Demonstrators chanted slogans such as "Long live the resistance of Rojava" and "Murderer HTS, collaborator ISIS." Turkish security forces deployed water cannons and tear gas against crowds attempting to cross into Syria in solidarity.
The Kurdish diaspora in Europe also took to the streets. Demonstrations were held in Germany, Austria, France, and Greece during the January clashes. The message from European capitals was clear: the Kurds who helped defeat ISIS deserve protection, not persecution.
Women on the Front Lines
Kurdish women fighters have played a central role in the struggle against jihadist terrorism. The Women's Protection Units (YPJ), founded in 2013, grew to some 7,000 volunteers who fought alongside male YPG fighters in the Syrian Democratic Forces.
These women delivered ISIS its first decisive defeat at Kobani in 2014 and participated in the August 2014 rescue of up to 10,000 Yazidis facing genocide at Mount Sinjar. Their contributions earned global admiration and underscored the progressive nature of the Rojava project, which enshrined gender equality in its governance.
The YPJ's fate now hangs in the balance. Under the ceasefire agreement, SDF forces are to be integrated into the Syrian Army, raising questions about whether the distinctive character of Kurdish self-governance can survive.
A Test for European Values
More than 40 million Kurds live across Turkey, Iran, Iraq, and Syria, making them one of the world's largest stateless peoples. Their fight against ISIS made them invaluable allies to Western powers, yet they now face abandonment as regional dynamics shift.
The EU faces a difficult balancing act. Its reliance on Turkey for migration control and cooperation with Damascus for regional stability has meant Kurdish aspirations have often been sidelined. The EU Asylum Agency notes that the Syrian National Army subjected Kurds to persecution before the regime change, and there is no indication their approach has changed.
For a continent that rebuilt itself on human rights after the horrors of the twentieth century, the Kurdish struggle presents a moral test. The women and men who fought terrorism deserve more than kind words. As the EU stands with Iran's freedom movement against another repressive regime, it should extend the same solidarity to the Kurds.
The question now is whether Europe will merely watch as Rojava's democratic experiment is dismantled, or whether it will use its considerable economic and diplomatic leverage to ensure Kurdish rights are protected in whatever Syria emerges from this turbulent transition.
January 21, 2026