News breaking over the ISIS chemical weapons specialist being captured by U.S. Special Operations Forces comes just after Syrian Islamists bomb the Kurdish district in Aleppo with chemical weapons. In a statement reported by the YPG leadership:
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“The Sheikh Maqsoud district in Aleppo was attacked with chemical weapons on Tuesday evening. Radical groups launched dozens of rockets filled with yellow phosphorus element” (effects of yellow phosphorus on the human body)
The YPG leadership emphasized that several armed Syrian Islamist groups were involved in the chemical attack in Aleppo, which lasted well into the night on Tuesday causing dozens of civilian casualties.
In an interview with ARA News in Aleppo, human rights activist Rezan Hiddo implored the international community and human rights groups to step in and stop the barrage of attacks on the Kurdish district, Sheikh Maqsoud. He said,
“We do not see any sympathy with the Kurdish civilians who suffer under those barbaric chemical attacks in Aleppo. Lives of hundreds of Kurdish children are at risk.”
Hiddo also said that medicine is in very short supply due in the district due to the siege under Islamist rebel groups.
On Sunday, 16 civilians were killed in the Sheikh Maqsoud district, most of whom were women and children, after Islamist rebels hit the area with a barrage of rockets. Last month, Turkey shelled the Kurdish-held airbase in Aleppo, which adds to the Kurdish casualty count as the they’re are sandwiched between two factions seeking to eradicate them from Aleppo.
The U.S. position on the Kurds prompted a statement from the U.S. State Department asking Turkey stop the bombing of the Kurds in Aleppo as Turkey maintains that PKK (YPG is a branch of PKK) are terrorists and Turkey has a right to defend against attacks.
As attacks from Syrian Islamists and Turkey mount against the Kurds in Aleppo, concerns for civilian safety and need for medical continue to rise along with the Kurdish death toll. The United States must take a stand and help the Kurds immediately, at the very least, get aid and medical to the civilians who are under constant attack on all sides.
How should the U.S. respond to the chemical weapon attacks on the Kurds and what should the U.S. do right now to aid the Kurds regardless of Turkey’s position on them? Sound off in the comments below!
