A US veteran who fought alongside the Kurds said Donald Trump’s decision to pull troops out of northern Syria was an “abandonment of trust” and warned it could lead to the "wholesale slaughter" of America's allies.
Michael Newton, an army veteran with deployment experience in Operation Provide Comfort, which defended Kurdish civilians as they fled their homes in northern Iraq in the aftermath of the Gulf War, told the The Independent he disapproved of the president's announcement.
“[The Kurds] are a people who believe in basic Democratic values and have long been oppressed from lots of quarters”, Mr Newton said.
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“The reason why the US has had such a strong relationship with the Kurds is because they believe in human dignity and fundamental human rights, and they’ve been oppressed many, many, many times.
“The only beacons of stability and peace in that region are Kurdish-controlled areas.”
On Sunday, Mr Trump said that the US would not stand in the way of a Turkish invasion and would be withdrawing their forces from the area. The Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) — the US's main ally in the fight against Isis in Syria — called the move "a stab in the back", having lost some 11,000 fighters in the years-long fight with the jihadists.
Turkish forces then began an massive ground and air offensive into northeastern Syria three days later, which has killed at least 10 civilians and displaced some 70,000. Ankara views the Kurdish forces as terrorists and accuses them of having links to Kurdish separatists in Turkey.
Shape Created with Sketch. Turkey launches offensive into Syria Show all 25 left Created with Sketch. right Created with Sketch. Shape Created with Sketch. Turkey launches offensive into Syria 1/25 Turkish soldiers with armored vehicles EPA 2/25 A woman flees with her children during Turkish bombardment on Syria's northeastern town of Ras al-Ain AFP/Getty 3/25 AFP/Getty 4/25 The first group of Turkish infantry prepare to enter Syria on the border Getty 5/25 Civilians flee AFP/Getty 6/25 Smoke billows from targets inside Syria AP 7/25 Turkish armoured vehicles enter Syria in Akcakale Getty 8/25 Civilians leave as smoke rises from Ras al-Ain AFP/Getty 9/25 A multi-rocket launcher fires in an unknown location Turkish Defence Ministry via Reuters 10/25 People wave as Turkish soldiers prepare to cross the border Getty 11/25 Girls stand together in Ras al Ain town Reuters 12/25 A woman walks as smoke billows following Turkish bombardment in Syria's northeastern town of Ras al-Ain AFP/Getty 13/25 A Turkish army's tank drives down from a truck towards the border with Syria AFP/Getty 14/25 Turkish jet taxis on tarmac after returning to a military base in southeast Diyarbakir Reuters 15/25 A Turkish armored vehicle drives down a road during a military operation in Kurdish areas of northern Syria EPA 16/25 People sit on belongings at a back of a truck as they flee Ras al Ain town Reuters 17/25 Turkey-backed Syrian opposition fighters enter Tel Abyad AFP/Getty 18/25 Civilians flee AFP/Getty 19/25 People flee Tal Abyad North Press Agency/Reuters TV 20/25 People wave as Turkish soldiers prepare to cross the border into Syria Getty 21/25 Civilians flee with their belongings AFP/Getty 22/25 AFP/Getty 23/25 Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, right, speaks with Defense Minister Hulusi Akar, left, as they watch the operation by Turkish forces in Kurdish areas EPA 24/25 Smoke rises from the Syrian town of Tal Abyad AFP/Getty 25/25 Turkey-backed members of Syrian National Army prepare for moving to Turkey with heavy armed vehicles EPA 1/25 Turkish soldiers with armored vehicles EPA 2/25 A woman flees with her children during Turkish bombardment on Syria's northeastern town of Ras al-Ain AFP/Getty 3/25 AFP/Getty 4/25 The first group of Turkish infantry prepare to enter Syria on the border Getty 5/25 Civilians flee AFP/Getty 6/25 Smoke billows from targets inside Syria AP 7/25 Turkish armoured vehicles enter Syria in Akcakale Getty 8/25 Civilians leave as smoke rises from Ras al-Ain AFP/Getty 9/25 A multi-rocket launcher fires in an unknown location Turkish Defence Ministry via Reuters 10/25 People wave as Turkish soldiers prepare to cross the border Getty 11/25 Girls stand together in Ras al Ain town Reuters 12/25 A woman walks as smoke billows following Turkish bombardment in Syria's northeastern town of Ras al-Ain AFP/Getty 13/25 A Turkish army's tank drives down from a truck towards the border with Syria AFP/Getty 14/25 Turkish jet taxis on tarmac after returning to a military base in southeast Diyarbakir Reuters 15/25 A Turkish armored vehicle drives down a road during a military operation in Kurdish areas of northern Syria EPA 16/25 People sit on belongings at a back of a truck as they flee Ras al Ain town Reuters 17/25 Turkey-backed Syrian opposition fighters enter Tel Abyad AFP/Getty 18/25 Civilians flee AFP/Getty 19/25 People flee Tal Abyad North Press Agency/Reuters TV 20/25 People wave as Turkish soldiers prepare to cross the border into Syria Getty 21/25 Civilians flee with their belongings AFP/Getty 22/25 AFP/Getty 23/25 Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, right, speaks with Defense Minister Hulusi Akar, left, as they watch the operation by Turkish forces in Kurdish areas EPA 24/25 Smoke rises from the Syrian town of Tal Abyad AFP/Getty 25/25 Turkey-backed members of Syrian National Army prepare for moving to Turkey with heavy armed vehicles EPA
“The Turks do have a legitimate right of self-defence against real terrorists … and that would have required a security zone that balanced the needs of the Kurds with real legitimate Turkish security interests. But that’s not what’s happened here,” Mr Newton said.
“Not all Kurds are terrorists. For the Turks to make that argument is fundamentally wrong. What the Turks have done is to take an over-expansive view. The right answer would have been — and was working — a carefully-coordinated strategic plan to eliminate real terrorists.”
He added: “There are ways to conduct counter-terrorism campaigns that don’t include the wholesale slaughter of Kurdish forces.”
Other US veterans have this week joined the chorus of condemnation against the decision, citing the Soldier’s Creed which states a soldier “will never leave a fallen comrade”.
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Josh Manning, a former counterterrorism analyst for the army, said in a tweet the decision was “hitting a lot of vets hard”.
“The Kurds sacrificed a lot and were just amazing partners in really tough times.
“I can’t imagine what its like being in N. Iraq [sic] and Syria and hearing your comrades under attack and being able to do nothing.”
Mr Manning later told The Independent: “Just like there are Kurds who are alive because of US forces, there are Americans who are alive because of sacrifices the Kurds made for us. Abandoning them to the Turkish military forces who want to raze their villages and cities is not the way to repay that debt.”
“The Kurdish intelligence, while not always perfect, was invaluable to how we understood the threat and nature of Iraq and the region,” he added.
The official Twitter account for the Special Operation Joint Task Force in Iraq and Syria, which previously fought alongside Kurdish forces, posted the hashtag in a tweet that has since been deleted.
In an Op-Ed for The Independent published on Wednesday, army veteran Charlotte Clymer described the Soldier's Creed as “a bedrock principle in the US military that goes back to the Revolutionary War, when our country was little more than a coalition of states seeking to overthrow an abusive tyrant.”
“This will lead to a slaughter of innocents who have supported our country through thick and thin,” she wrote. “The Kurds, who have been continually oppressed and brutalized, stuck with the United States because we essentially promised them survival. We gave our word as a supposed country of honour based on the principles of our founding: that all people should be free to set the shape of their destinies.”
Experts said Mr Trump’s decision could lead to a vacuum in the region that allows for the resurgence of ISIS. Meanwhile, Turkey’s advancement into Syria has already reportedly hampered Kurdish operations, which included the oversight of tens of thousands of ISIS prisoners who have been detained throughout the years-long conflict.
Asked about the possibility of those ISIS prisoners escaping, Mr Trump told reporters earlier this week: “Well, they’re going to be escaping to Europe.”
He also threatened “far more than sanctions” against Turkey if it failed to advance into Syria “in as humane a way as possible”.
_northernlights_ on October 11st, 2019 at 16:21 UTC »
And then people wonder why so many people around the world seem to hate America... It's that kind of stuff that's not helping. Dictate the world what to do and then just flip flop without warning, leaving allies to die.
JLBesq1981 on October 11st, 2019 at 15:22 UTC »
Trump made a unilateral decision that cost hundreds of the lives of American allies and the lives of civilians and he did it to further a personal business deal. That is outright corruption on its face.
GNNYSERGEANT_HARTMAN on October 11st, 2019 at 15:03 UTC »
I don’t blame them. US troops have fought and died along side the Kurds for close to 10 years now.
Charles Keating IV. Son of an Olympic swimmer, grandson to successful businessman, United States Navy SEAL . C4 gave his life fighting along side the Kurds against ISIS
Former POTUS, Barack Obama remarks on Charles Keating IV
“Charles Keating, IV -- Charlie, or Chuck, or “C-4” -- was born into a family of veterans, All-American athletes and Olympians -- even a Gold Medalist. So, naturally, Charlie, and the love of his life, Brooke, celebrated their anniversary on the Fourth of July. She called him the “huge goofball” everybody wanted to be friends with -- the adventurer who surfed and spearfished and planned to sail around the world.
When the Twin Towers fell, he was in high school, and he decided to enlist -- joined the SEALs because, he told his friends, it was the hardest thing to do. He deployed to Afghanistan and three times to Iraq, earning a Bronze Star for valor. Earlier this month, while assisting local forces in Iraq who had come under attack, he gave his life.
A few days later, one of his platoon mates sent Charlie’s parents a letter from Iraq. “Please tell everyone Chuck saved a lot of lives today,” it said. He left us, “with that big signature smile on his handsome face, as always. Chuck was full of aloha, but was also a ferocious warrior.” Today, we honor Chief Special Warfare Officer Charles Keating IV.”