The humanitarian crisis caused by the Islamic State (IS) continues to terrorize and displace hundreds of thousands of people in the Middle East. The autonomous canton of Kobani is now bearing the brunt of the IS’s attacks as the international community has mostly been passive. The city has been under siege for three weeks. Despite fierce resistance by the defenders of the town, the advance of the IS forces towards Kobani is threatening to set off another massacre similar to that of Shengal. As scholars working on issues related to the Kurds and other peoples of Kurdistan, we are profoundly concerned about yet another imminent humanitarian crisis and stand in solidarity with the people of Kobani. We urgently call on the coalition forces against the IS and the broader international community to take immediate action to prevent an impending disaster by supporting the Kurds in their fight for self-defense.
We view the situation in Kobani as one of self-defense against the military aggression of the IS, notorious for its macabre forms of violence against ethnic and religious minorities. The defenders of the city of Kobani have repeatedly and desperately tried to bring their predicament to the attention of the world community and called for more focused and effective air strikes against IS targets around Kobani in coordination with the political authorities and resistance fighters of Rojava (Western Kurdistan). They are once again asking for diplomatic and political recognition, weapons of self-defense, and humanitarian aid to protect themselves against the relentless onslaught of IS. They are too ill-equipped to be able to fend off the most advanced American and Russian arsenals used by the IS. If global support is not provided immediately, they may not be able to withstand the IS’s incessant bombardments; tomorrow may be too late.
We fully support Kobani’s demands and spirit of self-defense and call on the international coalition forces and the broader international community to support Kobani immediately. In expressing our solidarity, we need to stress the fact this statement is not a call for any military aggression or occupation, including that of the Turkish military. We encourage the Turkish government to negotiate with the Kurdish representatives in good faith to ensure the ongoing peace process, which holds much promise. As Kurdish political representatives of Rojava have repeatedly declared, if they are recognized as a legitimate authority and provided with the needed weaponry and other support, they are capable of driving away the threat of the IS.
Ultimately our appeal for extending the necessary support to Kobani has as much to do with the survival of a pluralistic city and its residents, as it has to do with the defense of freedom everywhere else.
List of Signatories
- Gulan Abuzeyit, Brock University
- Yasemin Acar, Claremont Graduate University
- Dr. Necla Acik, University of Manchester
- Asst. Prof. Salih Can Aciksoz, University of Arizona
- Yılmaz Adal, Koc University
- Maria Chiara Addis, European Food Safety Authority
- Dr. Hashem Ahmadzadeh, Institute for Research and Development-Kurdistan/Iraq
- Assoc. Prof. Ananth Aiyer, University of Michigan-Flint
- Ahmet Hamdi Akkaya, Ghent University
- Asst. Prof. Elçin Aktoprak, Ankara University
- Prof. Nadje Al-Ali, University of London
- Taimoor Aliassi, Association for Human Rights in Kurdistan of Iran-Geneva
- Sacha Alsancakli, Université La Sorbonne nouvelle, Paris
- Assoc. Prof. Jennifer Alvey, University of Michigan-Flint
- Asst. Prof. Seda Altug, Bogazici University, ATA Institute
- Asst. Prof. Ali Ashouri, California State University, San Diego
- Delal Aydin, Binghamton University
- Dr. Yavuz Aykan, Université Paris I (Panthéon-Sorbonne)
- Azad Aziz, Manchester Academic Health Sciences Centre
- Sonay Ban, Temple University
- Hanifi Baris, University of Aberdeen
- Asst. Prof. Felek Baran, Hakkari University
- Dr. Derya Bayir, Queen Mary, University of London
- Carol Benedict, Winona State University
- Dr. Bahar Beser, Coventry University
- Dr. Daria Bocharnikova, Harvard University
- Dr. Joanna Bocheńska, Jagiellonian University
- Firat Bozcali, Stanford University
- N. Argun Cakir, University of Exeter
- Prof. Antonio Callari, Franklin and Marshall College
- Eray Cayli, University College London
- Omer Celebi, Yildiz Technical University
- Adnan Celik, Paris EHESS
- Filiz Celik, University of London, Birkbeck
- Onder Celik, Johns Hopkins University
- Dr. Behrooz Chamanaram, Georg-August-University, Goettingen
- Abdul Haque Chang, University of Texas at Austin
- Faculty Emeritus Jeff Clark, James Madison University
- Lynne Colley, Exeter and Soran Universities
- Assoc. Prof. Vahap Coşkun, Dicle University
- Prof. Hamid Dabashi, Columbia University
- Asst. Prof. Mahiye Secil Dagtas, University of Waterloo
- Cevat Dargin, New York University
- Engin Emre Deger, Istanbul Sehir University
- Dilara Demir, Rutgers University
- Yunus Demir, Istanbul Bilgi University
- Davide Denti, University of Trento, Italy
- Yasemin Dildar, University of Massachusetts, Amherst
- Dr. Dilsah Deniz
- Dogan Dogan, Canadian Kurdish Federation
- Dr. Adis Duderija, University of Malaya
- Deniz Duruiz, Columbia University
- Esin Duzel, UC San Diego
- Dr. Vera Eccarius-Kelly, Siena College
- Asst. Prof. Ozge Ejder, Mimar Sinan Fine Arts University
- Deniz Ekici, independent Researcher
- Baban Eliassi, Geneva University
- Dr. Turgut Ercetin, Stanford University
- Ilgin Erdem, University of Massachusetts-Amherst
- Dr. Umut Erel, Open University
- Lara Fresko, Cornell University
- Resul Geyik, Mardin Artuklu University
- Dr. Maria Giedz, Gdansk School of Banking
- William Gourlay, Monash University
- Onur Gunay, Princeton University
- Asst. Prof. Azat Zana Gundoğan, University of Michigan-Flint
- Aziz Guzel, York University
- Serra Hakyemez, Johns Hopkins University
- Emad Hamedi, University of St Andrews
- Wendelmoet Hamelink, Leiden University
- Prof. Katharine Hodgkin, University of East London
- Susan Jahoda, University of Massachusetts, Amherst
- Dr. Karolina Jaworska, University of Silesia
- Maruf Kabi, University of St Andrews
- Karol Kaczorowski, Jagiellonian University
- Erkan Karacay, University of Exeter
- Fethi Karakecili, York University
- Emine Rezzan Karaman, UC Los Angeles
- Seref Kavak, Keele University
- Dr. Serap A. Kayatekin, The American College of Thessaloniki
- Dr. Janroj Keles, Middlesex University
- Pinar Dinc Kenanoglu, London School of Economics
- K. Mehmet Kentel, University of Washington, Seattle
- Dr. Mehmet Rauf Kesici, Kocaeli Universtiy and Regent’s University
- Mina Khanlarzadeh, Columbia University
- Ugur Kocak, University of Chicago
- Prof. Anna Krasnowolska, Jagiellonian University
- Asst. Prof. Bulent Kucuk, Bogazici University
- Mehmet Barış Kuymulu, City University of New York
- Benjamin Kweskin, Independent Scholar
- Patrick Lewis, University of Chicago
- Andrew Littlejohn, Harvard Univesity
- Assoc. Prof. Yahya M. Madra, Bogazici University
- Assoc. Prof. Kamran Matin, Sussex University
- Ibrahim Malazada, Brunel University
- Caroline McKusick, University of California, Davis
- Fatma Derya Mentes, Duke University
- Dr. Sabah Mofidi
- Della Murad, Gulan
- Veronica D. Musa LL.M., Human Rights Lawyer, Argentina
- Prof. Leyla Neyzi, Sabanci University
- Assoc. Prof. Bruce Norton, San Antonio College
- Francis O’Connor, European University Institute, COSMOS
- Dilan Okcuoglu, Queen’s University
- Dr. Ahmet Feyyad Oncel
- Dr. Ergin Opengin, University of Bamberg
- Prof. Emeritus Baskin Oran, Ankara University
- Omer Ozcan, University of Texas at Austin
- H. Ege Ozen, Binghamton University (SUNY)
- Prof. Umut Ozkirimli, Lund University
- Asst. Prof. Ceren Ozselcuk, Bogazici University
- Asst. Prof. Hisyar Ozsoy, Univesity of Michigan-Flint
- Assoc. Prof. Ayse Parla, Sabanci University
- Zozan Pehlivan, Queen’s University
- Naomí Ramírez Díaz, Autónoma University of Madrid
- Asst. Prof. Renata Rusek-Kowalska, Jagiellonian University
- Sardar Saadi, University of Toronto
- Prof. George Saliba, Columbia University
- Berivan Kutlay Sarikaya, University of Toronto
- Cafer Sarikaya, Bogazici University
- Marlene Schäfers, University of Cambridge
- Dr. Thomas Schmidinger, University of Vienna, Austria
- Ceren Sengul, University of Edinburgh
- Dr. Serap Ruken Sengul, University of Michigan-Ann Arbor
- Dr. Amir Sharifi, California State University, Long Beach
- Assoc. Prof. Said Shams, Soran University
- Assoc. Prof. Jaffer Sheyholislami, Carleton University
- Mushtaq Ul Haq Ahmad Sikander, Kashmir University
- Spyros A. Sofos, Lund University
- Asst. Prof. Kamal Soleimani, Mardin Artuklu University
- Rina Srabonian, University of Manchester
- Dr. Latif Tas, Oxford University
- Assoc. Prof. Kumru Toktamis, Pratt Institute Brooklyn, NY
- Asst. Prof. Hakan Topa, SUNY Purchase College
- Vedat Toprak, Anadolu University
- Zenonas Tziarras, University of Warwick
- Özden Melis Ulug, Bremen University
- Secil Uluisik, University of Arizona
- Laura Unger, Independent Researcher,
- Kerem Ussakli, Stanford University
- Asst. Prof. Nazan Ustundag, Bogazici University
- Prof. Abbas Vali, Bogazici University
- Dr. Anand Vaidya, Harvard University
- Prof. Nicole F. Watts, San Francisco State University
- Dr. Nerina Weiss, Fafo Institute for Applied International Studies, Norway
- Assoc. Prof. Kamala Visweswaran, University of Texas at Austin
- Assoc. Prof. Aziz Yagan, Dicle University
- Prof. Mesut Yegen, Istanbul Sehir University
- Ismail Yigit, Mississippi State University
- Dilan Yildirim, Harvard University
- Emrah Yildiz, Harvard University
- Yesim Yaprak Yildiz, University of Cambridge
- Asst. Prof. Zeynep Turkyilmaz, Dartmouth College
- Asst. Prof. Zehra Yilmaz, Van Yuzuncuyil University
- Cagri Yoltar, Duke University
- Dr. Deniz Yonucu, independent researcher
- Asst. Prof. Zafer Yörük, Izmir University of Economics
- Assoc. Prof. Grazyna Zajac, Jagiellonian University, Poland
- Dr. Goran A.S. Zangana, Health Policy Research Organization, Kurdistan/Iraq
- Dr. Asli Zengin, Yörük University
- Dr. Charlotta Zettervall, Malmö University
- Dr. Welat Zeydanlioglu, Kurdish Studies Journal Editor, Sweden
- Prof. Zvi Zohar, Bar-Ilan University
- Dr. Farangis Ghaderi, Exeter University
- Duygu Çelik, Istanbul University, Turkey
- Dr Jalal Nori, Stockholm University
- Servet Erdem, University of Oxford
- Fateh Saeidi, Georg-August University
- Gulcan Sezer, independent researcher, Holland
- Assoc. Prof. Yılmaz Özdil, Mardin Artuklu University
- Dr. Hiva Panahi, Panteion University
- Prof Zeynep Gambetti, Bogazici University
- Dr Recep Dogan, independent researcher, Turkey
- Seyfettin Cabuga, Fatih University
- Asst. Prof. Marina Taloyan, Karolinska Institute, Sweden
- Osman Isci, Hacetepe University, Turkey
- Dr. Firat Gundem, Dokuz Eylul University, Turkey
- Dr. David Selim Sayers, San Francisco State University
- Dr. Evrim Emir-Sayers, San Francisco State University
- Ihsan Gunduz, George Mason University
- Ass. Prof. Umut Tümay Arslan, Mimar Sinan Fine Arts University
- Dr. John Huynyk, independent researcher, London, UK.
- Dr. Salih Akin, University of Rouen
- Asst. Director, Christian Sinclair, University of Arizona
- Betul Rifaioglu, University Sussex
- Dr. Rûken Alp, Sabanci University
- Dr. Zerrin Ozlem Biner, University of Cambridge
- Navid Naderi, Duke University
- Dr. Cuma Cicek, SciencesPo de Paris/CERI
- Firat Capan, Hacetepe University
- Ceren Zeynep Ak, Queen Mary, University of London
- Jan Bojer Vindheim, Norway
- Asst. Prof. Ali Kemal Özcan, Tunceli University
- Prof. Michael Leezenberg, Amsterdam University
-
Didem Oral, European University Institute
- Özgür Sevgi Göral, Ecole des Hautes Etudes en Sciences Sociales (EHESS)
- Ahmet Alış, Bogazici University
- Z. Asli Elitsoy, Bilkent University
- Massoud Sharifi Dryaz, Ecole des Hautes Etudes en Sciences Sociales (EHESS)
-
Bekir Halhalli, Comenius University in Bratislava
-
Asst. Prof. Selim Temo, Mardin Artuklu University
- Gulay Turkmen- Dervisoglu, Yale University
- Pinar Kemerli, Bard College, Cornell University
- Djene Bajalan, American University of Iraq – Sulaimani
- Dr. Nadia Jones-Gailani, University of South Florida
- Dr. Sebahattin Topcuoglu, independent, Hamburg, Germany
- Dr. Farhad Shakely, Uppsala University
- Asst. Prof. Barış Ünlü, Ankara University
- Kajal Mohammadi, York University, Canada
- Mehtap Tosun, Middle East Technical University
- Kumru Bilici, Carleton University, Canada
- Shayee Khanaka, librarian, University of California, Berkeley
- Dr. Ipek Demir, University of Leicester
- Mardin Aminpour, The university of Texas at Austin
- Assoc. Prof. Osman Aytar, Malardalen University, Sweden
- Kawa Morad, University of Exeter
- Ozcan Ogut, University of Pompeu Fabra
-
Prof. Ali Akay, Mimar Sinan Fine Arts University
-
Ülker Sözen, Mimar Sinan Fine Arts University
-
Emine Iğdi, Free University of Amsterdam
- Assoc. Prof. Jaffer Sheyholislami, Carleton University, Canada
- Dr. Gérard Gautier, Institut National des Langues et Civilisations Orientales, Paris
- Dr. Eszter Spät, Käte Hamburger Kolleg, Ruhr-Universität Bochum
- Demet Arpacık, CUNY Graduate Center, New York
- Charlotte M. Sáenz, Adjunct Associate Faculty, California Institute of Integral Studies, USA
- Shenah Abdullah, University of Sulaimani-Kurdistan, Iraq
- Dr. Zhala Azad, University of Sulaimani-Kurdistan, Iraq
- Assoc. Prof. Besime Sen, Mimar Sinan Fine Arts University
- Asst. Prof. Ceren Belge, Concordia University
- Dr. Boris James. Institut Français du Proche-Orient
- Shna Kurdi, independent researcher, UK
- Prof Izettin Önder, Istanbul University
- Alev Yıldırım, CUNY Graduate Center, New York
- Tugba Yildirim, EHESS, France
- Berrin Altin Soran, University of Leicester
- Yeşim Mutlu, Middle East Technical University
- Daniel Barry, CUNY Graduate Center, New York
-
Sibel Yardımcı, Mimar Sinan Fine Arts University
-
Murat Cemal Yalçıntan, Mimar Sinan Fine Arts University
- Dr. Behrooz Shojai, Mardin Artuklu University
- Arda Gucler, Northwestern University
- Dr. Azad Henareh, United States Department of Agriculture
- Deniz Cifti, Exeter University
- Senem Guneser, Free University of Brussels
- Prof. Christine Allison, Exeter University
- Safak Kilictepe, Indiana University
- Ulaş Özdemir, Yıldız Technical University
- Dr. Kariane Westrheim, University of Bergen
- Muhammad Waladbagi, Durham University
- Assoc. Prof. Benjamin Smith, University of Florida
- Dr. Clemence Scalbert-Yucel, University of Exeter/Institut Français des Etudes Anatoliennes
- Assoc. Prof. Maya Arakon, Süleyman Sah University
- Gulden Ozcan, Carleton University, Canada
- Asst. Professor, Juan Obarrio, Johns Hopkins University
- Asst. Prof. Senem Aslan, Bates College
- Erden Ilter, Binghamton Universtity, USA
- Dr. Katharina Brizić, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley Language Center
- Prof. Adriano V. Rossi, L’Orientale University, Napoli, Italy
- Kardo Bokani, Assistant Lecturer, University College Dublin
- Prof. Hamit Bozarslan, Ecole des Hautes Etudes en Sciences Sociales (EHESS)
- Dr Ozlem Galip, University of Oxford
- Latif Yilmaz, Middle East Technical University, Turkey
- Hakan Sandal, Istanbul Bilgi University, Turkey
- Prof. Gulistan Gurbey, Free University of Berlin
- Dr. Kariane Westrheim, University of Bergen
- Dr. Minoo Alinia, University of Uppsala
- Sara Belelli, University of Naples, Italy
- Dr. Cengiz Gunes, The Open University, UK
- Birgul Yilmaz, SOAS, University of London
- Nazan Bedirhanoglu, Ankara University
- Dr. Murat Issi, University of Panteion, Greece
- Deniz Cenk Demir, McGill University, Canada
- Veronica Buffon, University of Exeter
- Dr. Anna Grabolle-Celiker, independent researcher, Turkey
- Can Cemgil, Istanbul Bilgi University, Turkey
- Shahab Vali, Artuklu University, Turkey
- Behnam Amini, York University, Canada
- Francesco Marilungo, Exeter University, UK
- Schluwa Sama, Philipps-University Marburg, Germany
- Prof. Veena Das, John Hopkins University, USA
- Assoc. Prof. Naveeda Khan, John Hopkins University, USA
- Assoc. Prof. Clara Han, John Hopkins University, USA
- Dr. Mustafa Akcinar, University of Zurich
- Yasamin Moein, Istanbul Bilgi University, Turkey
- Dr. Azer Kilic, Koc University
- Dr. Salima Tasdemir. independent researcher, Turkey
- Zeynep Kocak, European University Institute
- Katrine Scott, Lund University
- Senem Guneser, Free University of Brussels
- Izettin Onder, Bogazici University, Turkey
- Assoc. Prof. Seckin Aydin, Batman University, Turkey
- Elif Genc, New School for Social Research, USA
- Dr. Thomas Schmidinger, University of Vienna
- Ozgur Cicek, Binghamton University, USA
- Dr. Handan Caglayan, Ankara University, Turkey
- Gustavo Espeja, independent researcher, Argentina
-
Mithat Ishakoglu, University of Exeter, UK
- Dr. Maria Six-Hohenbalken, Institute for Social Anthropology, Austria
- Dr Tove Skutnabb-Kangas, independent researcher, Sweden
- Özgür Bal, Middle East Technical University, Turkey
- Prof. Adriano V. Rossi, L’Orientale University, Italy
- Dr. Olivier GROJEAN, Aix-Marseille Université, France
- Beyan Farshi, Simon Fraser University, Vancouver, Canada
Kurdish Studies Network 