Kurds

"I believe Al-Qaeda today resembles the Leninist, or Communist, movement, before it came to power in 1917, or the Zionist movement of Herzl, before Ben-Gurion brought it to power in Israel."

"Women can do whatever they wish when they are by themselves, but when they are members of society they must behave in such a way that their behavior is accepted by the society at large"

"This is a victory opening the gates of men’s hearts."

"I thought of thee, amid the thrusting of their spears, While the straight browned blades quenched their thirst in our blood— ... again and again we were on the verge of destruction; nor would God have delivered us save for some [future] duty."

"This Yemen is a treasure house...We conquered it, but up to this day we have had no return and no advantage from it. There have only been innumerable expenses, the sending out of troops...and expectations which did not produce what was hoped for in the end."

"Children are brought up in the way in which their elders were brought up."

"The sacred works [Koran, hadith, etc.] are full of passages referring to the jihad. Saladin was more assiduous and zealous in this than in anything else...Jihad and the suffering involved in it weighed heavily on his heart and his whole being in every limb; he spoke of nothing else, thought only about equipment for the fight, was interested only in those who had taken up arms, had little sympathy with anyone who spoke of anything else or encouraged any other activity."

"There are some who hold up the slogan: the fall of the regime. In contrast we demand the fall of the oppressive authoritarian system. Our problems are not problems of powers. The ruling powers in Damascus come and go. For us Kurds, this isn't so important. What is important is that we Kurds assert our existence. The current regime does not accept us, nor do those who will potentially come into power. Our politics differ from a politics that seeks power."

"We are profiting from the unrest. It is a historical chance for us. We have a right and are making use of it. We do not kill anyone and we also do not fight against anyone. We are preparing our people and ourselves for the period after the fall of the regime."

"We, as the Kurdish Freedom Movement, … reject classical models like federalism, con-federalism, self-government, and autonomy. Our goal is the formation of a new Kurdish society, the formation of a free person, a person with free will and free thought. … The point is to renew society from the bottom up."

"We consider anyone who does not publicly take a stand against the Turkish position to be one of Turkey's henchmen."

"Russia has recently been very vocal about the vicious crimes against us, but the US and Europe have not even condemned atrocities against civilian Kurds! Why are they ignoring attacks of these al-Qaeda related jihadists? … Everybody in Syria received international aid, but not us, the Kurds! On the contrary, we are under an embargo from all around."

"I do not know … why American officials are not willing to meet with us. … We have never had any animosity against America and the American people. Quite the opposite, we see our future in Western democracy, and we are trying to implement it in our own society. … The United States is the cradle of democracy and the American people support freedom for everyone. … There is no doubt that the interests of the American people are not contrary to ours."

"Until now, PYD members were jailed, captured and many of them killed by torture. If [the Assad government] calls for the Kurds, the Kurds cannot trust them. Actually, they have called us many times to have separate discussions. … The regime and the Salafists are the same. We don't believe that one of them is better than the others."

"We are not a small people; 15% of the population are Kurds. As you know, we can protect ourselves even from the regime and extremists. So we have to have a word in the solution. If they ignore the Kurds, they will not find a way to solve the Syrian problem. … Because the coalition [i.e. the Syrian National Coalition] doesn't recognize the Kurds, they cannot represent the Kurds [in the Geneva peace talks], only the coalition."

"Within one half-hour, we can stop all Kurdish forces and they will obey this, but for those groups [i.e. armed factions represented by the Syrian National Coalition] it is not true."

"Drawing and dying for borders is a European illness from the nineteenth and twentieth centuries."

"The [democratic Syrian] federalism we talk about is not a geographical line. Maybe tomorrow it's going to be expanded to Raqqa, and other places. … Maybe even the people of Daraa will join."

"We think of a democratic nation or democratic state, they [i.e. the Syrian National Coalition-affiliated Kurdish National Council] are still looking for a nation-state, which is different. We accept pluralism for living together with Arabs and other components [i.e. ethnic groups]. They are calling for a nation-state for the Kurdish people. They cannot accept Arabs and other minorities."

"If they [i.e. the US-backed Syrian Islamist opposition] accept to live in a secular country, in which everyone can express themselves, it's OK. We believe religion should be on the ethical side, not more than that. Religion should not be used as a tool for politics, which is not valid for the Muslim Brotherhood because they are looking to establish a caliphate. They should keep religion in the church and the mosque."

"Before [Öcalan] left Syria, we came together as a whole and discussed our situation. The formation of the PYD is, in fact, a result of this. Öcalan was trying to develop a strategic relationship between the Syrian regime and the Kurds in Rojava. However, the Syrian regime lacked the understanding and capacity to do so. If they had understood him, the situation in Syria today could be different. If they had listened to his suggestions and ideas, we could have seen a different Syria."

"Öcalan resurrected a dead people. The people were dying, about to be finished, but Mr. Öcalan didn't allow that; he pulled the Kurd out of the wolf's mouth."

"We were looking for a movement that would answer our questions and analyze the experiences of the Kurds. While we were [still] young, I learned from the [Kurdistan Workers' Party] cadres that the movement we were looking for had formed."

"They [i.e. the Syrian transitional government] say they want to enter into dialogue with all components [i.e. ethnic groups] in Syria. That is precisely why we are seeking contact with them. … We already have twelve years of experience living peacefully with all communities, so we can and want to help the transitional government. … We are not separatists. We want to help build the new Syria."

"Mr. Abdullah Öcalan firmly believes that political action is the best path forward. We align with this stance because in North and East Syria, we carried weapons only to defend ourselves. If the attacks against us stop, we will lay down our arms—we are not war enthusiasts."

"The leadership blocked this new plot through agreements and warnings, particularly about the risk of 'new Gazas' and the need for caution in Rojava."

"What everyone should know is this: it is the Kurds who defend democracy."

"The agreement [between the DAANES and the Syrian transitional government] is a beginning. The people must remain vigilant."

"He was a true patriot of the Syrian lands. He knew how to be fully Kurdish with the Kurds; an indispensable friend with the Arabs; a true brother with the Turks. … He was a cornerstone of Rojava that I always trusted, and he will remain so. I see him as the twin brother of Sırrı Süreyya, whom we lost during the Peace and Democratic Society Process."