Daily Brief

Wednesday, September 30

Kurdish-language lessons debate continues and Ocalan sends message to London conference

5:10
0:005:10

Kurdish lessons: from Mezlohm Abdi's message to the call for a constitution

0:27

Kamîran: The discontent we spoke about yesterday has grown broader today. Ronahi, who is saying what?

Ronahî: The decision is from the twenty seventh of August. Syria's transitional government's Ministry of Education has limited Kurdish lessons to three hours a week. Presidential adviser Mezlohm Abdi issued a video message calling on Kurdish students and their families to continue the new school year, and promised to make further efforts to ensure the Kurdish language is officially recognised.

Ronahî: In the Jazira region, lawyers also demanded that the status of the Kurdish language be enshrined in Syria's constitution, rather than remaining symbolic steps. In Hasaka, student Elin Boti said Kurdish is her mother tongue and that they have the right to continue their education in it.

Kamîran: So the talk is no longer only about the number of hours, but about the place of the language in the law.

Ronahî: Yes, and it is visible on the streets as well. In Zirgan, PYD youth and residents held a march with banners reading 'Our language is our identity'. In Derbasiyeh, the Star Congress described the decision as an attack on the gains of the Kurdish people. In these reports, the ministry's response to the criticism is not included.

Ocalan's message and Bese Hozat's assessment

1:43

Ronahî: Another topic is the peace process. Abdullah Ocalan sent a message to the Conference for Peace and Democratic Integration; the conference begins today in London and ends tomorrow, organised by the Kurdish Affairs Centre.

Ronahî: In the message, Ocalan says that his call for peace and a democratic society, which he announced on the twenty seventh of February two thousand twenty five, has opened the door to a new phase, and that the main goal is to build a democratic society.

Kamîran: And from the KCK side, there is a voice that is not quite as hopeful, it seems.

Ronahî: That is right. KCK Executive Council co-chair Bese Hozat said in a television interview that the movement has taken important steps in the last two years, but according to her the state did not give a serious response. Hozat said that without democratisation the process will not succeed. Regarding Rojava, she also said that without a change in Damascus's central approach, democratic integration cannot happen. This is one side's assessment; the state's response is not in the reports.

Jazira: price rises, Japan's sanctions and shrinking aid

2:49

Ronahî: In Jazira, according to reports, families are under the burden of the transitional government's economic decisions: customs taxes on imported goods have increased, fuel prices have risen, there is a new currency crisis, and grain payments and civil servant salaries are delayed. All of this after a war that lasted fourteen years.

Ronahî: On the same day, Japan announced that it is lifting sanctions on some Syrian institutions and companies operating in oil and gas, finance and telecommunications.

Kamîran: So at the top the door is opening for the economy, but at the bottom families are being squeezed even more. And international aid, where is it?

Ronahî: It is also shrinking. The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees warned that due to the financial crisis, this year nearly eight million three hundred thousand refugees and displaced people could be left without aid. In Syria alone, one hundred sixty two thousand five hundred displaced people and returnees are at risk of losing support.

Serakaniye displaced people in Kobani

3:51

Kamîran: And regarding the return to Serakaniye, which we also mentioned yesterday, today there is a figure.

Ronahî: Sara Kawas, a member of the Serakaniye Displaced People's Committee in Kobani, said that nearly one thousand seven hundred people who left their homes are now registered in Kobani.

Ronahî: According to her, the committee is trying to ensure these people return to their city safely and as soon as possible.

Military plane crashes in Russia

4:16

Ronahî: Russia's Defence Ministry announced that today a Tu one hundred and fifty four type military plane crashed in the Amur region in the east of the country.

Ronahî: Six crew members lost their life and one was injured.

Kamîran: And the cause? What does the ministry say?

Ronahî: According to the ministry, the plane crashed during a training flight, in an uninhabited area. The technical cause of the crash has not been disclosed in the statements.

Turkish lira falls again

4:43

Ronahî: Briefly on the economy: the Turkish lira fell to its lowest level ever against the United States dollar.

Kamîran: How much?

Ronahî: On Tuesday one dollar was sold for about forty nine lira, compared with forty eight point nine eight lira the previous day. The change is small, but it is a record.

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Kurdish Daily News · Kurdish-language lessons debate continues and Ocalan sends message to London conference · mazdek AI