We Had an 'FSA' That Was Called 'Kuvayi Milliye' and 'Mujahideen'!..

When Ankara sat down at the table once again with the terrorist leader in Imralı, its policy and narrative were that the Syrian PKK would also lay down its arms, and that non-Syrian PKK members, primarily the so-called general Mazlum Kobani, would leave the region.

But none of this happened; the US had Mazlum Kobani sign an agreement by sitting him at the table with the new head of Syria, Jolani, as if he were a partner in power.

While the pro-government media presented this agreement as “YPG surrenders to Damascus,” Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan, the chief architect of our Syria policy since his time as head of the MIT, outlined the perspective as follows:

“It is essential that all armed elements in the region that are unofficial and involved in terrorist activities be removed from the equation again... If there is an agreement signed in good faith, let it be implemented, but there may be some problems there, mines laid for the future; we, as Turkey, are observing this very closely from our own perspective, we are looking... We discussed all these questions around the table with Head of State Jolani and his colleagues... What do we expect from the Syrian state? The Kurds must be given all their rights, but in return, the terrorist structure there must be eliminated, and the armed element must hand over all its means and capabilities to the state... It is a matter of cautious optimism, which we have been saying from the beginning. In other words, a constant opportunity must be given to what is good; we do not have a search for a method to advance a position through blood and war. If possible, let it be the last resort; if possible, let it not happen at all.”

Perhaps it is entirely the result of this “cautious optimism” while there was nothing concrete on the table; Ankara began to use the term SDF (Syrian Democratic Forces) instead of “terrorist organization.”

When Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan performed the PKK barbecue party and weapon-burning show, he stated that this was “very important and gratifying in line with the goal of a Turkey without terrorism,” and then added, “We will continue to remain on alert until the KCK, with all its components and elements, ceases to be a threat to our country, our nation, and our geography.”

In response, Mazlum Kobani and even the ringleaders of the PKK-KCK emphasized that the terrorist leader in Imralı did not want the organization in Syria to lay down its arms and continued their insistence on “autonomy.”

WHO IS THE ONE TREATING TURKEY LIKE A 'FOOL': MAZLUM OR ÖCALAN?

Let us come to Hakan Fidan's latest statement, which was very surprising and debated. In a joint press conference with Syrian Foreign Minister Shaibani on August 13, while evaluating the SDF's failure to lay down its arms and the fact that the March 10 integration agreement has still not been implemented, he recalled that “organization members coming from Turkey, Iraq, Iran, and Europe have not left Syria” and spoke as follows:

“They say the articles written in the agreement we made with Syria are not binding on us, and the process ongoing in Turkey does not concern us... Now the YPG management cadres must also stop the policy of playing for time... Excuse me, no one is a fool, we are not fools. We are not blind to the cunning you display there just because we are investing good faith in these processes. There is a rule to being a great state and serving a great purpose; we are just doing that. We are warning you, we are calling on you; change where you stand... My call to the YPG management; let them enter into positive engagement with the Damascus administration, let them do their best to build the future of Syria together, and let them stop being a threat to themselves with a ton of terrorists they have gathered from around the world.”

Following Fidan, the Ministry of National Defense also announced that “since the March 10 memorandum, the terrorist organization SDF has not fulfilled any of the terms of the agreement and has continued its attempts to disrupt the political unity and territorial integrity of Syria”!..

The first reaction to Fidan's outburst came from the solution partners, DEM. Co-Chair Tuncer Bakırhan, who uses the term “northeast Syria administration” for the PKK/YPG, criticized Fidan with expressions such as, “As far as I know, he is not in Syria's cabinet... How can this people believe in this mind whose only motivation is to zero out the gains of the Kurds?.. Should this people put their heads to the sword before they get their rights and laws?.. Let no one make personal fortune calculations here in a way that casts a shadow on a hundred years of shared history.”

DEM Spokesperson Ayşegül Doğan accused Fidan of “demagoguery” and called on him to abandon this language...

CHP's man in the parliamentary commission, Sezgin Tanrıkulu, replied to Fidan, “Foreign policy is not conducted with street language. Moreover; the ‘Kurdish issue’ is not a foreign policy issue, but an internal policy issue. Let no one be offended, the Kurds are not ‘fools’ either.”

Since the main point of disagreement between Ankara and the SDF is clear; let us once again call for the disclosure of the letter the terrorist leader sent to his “spiritual son” Mazlum Kobani.

Disclose it so we can see whether the terrorist leader said “Lay down your arms,” or furthermore, “Give up on autonomy,” or not. If he didn't, we will ask why other fairy tales have been told to the nation for so many months... If he did, it will be clearly revealed that the terrorist leader is not a “founding leader” whose word is listened to and who can be relied upon at all!..

ANOTHER OPERATION WITH DRUMS AND ZURNA

Before Minister Fidan's statement, the pro-government media had already started news about an operation against the SDF with drums and zurna again. After the statement, they accelerated even more and threw these headlines:

“The end of the road is in sight for the SDF, an operation is coming... Military operation preparations against the SDF... Final warning for the operation... We saw Israel's hand”

Thank goodness, they also wrote how the operation would be carried out; if there is no development by September, the Syrian administration and tribes will take action against the SDF... The Syrian army will deploy on the field especially those who fought against the PKK and DAESH in previous years and those who mostly participated in the Euphrates Shield, Olive Branch, and Spring Shield operations... Turkey will not intervene directly but will support them... Meanwhile, if the organization takes concrete steps, the time given for integration will be extended until the end of the year!..

What about Tom Barrack, the new Greater Middle East Project (BOP) governor of the US, whom Ankara trusts so much? He also requested additional time from Turkey for diplomatic efforts and negotiations with the SDF. In other words, continue to stall and make Turkey digest the SDF!..

Indeed, the head of Syria, Jolani, announced that “an agreement draft, which Syria, the SDF, and Turkey are also concerned with and in which the Americans are also present, has been agreed upon,” and said, “If these four parties agree on something, it happens.”

LET THEM NOT DECEIVE EITHER

While an indirect operation against the terrorist organization in Syria has started to be discussed, let us remind you of something that is no longer even mentioned.

There was an army that Ankara trained within the scope of “train-equip” together with the US, paid in dollars, numbering 75-100 thousand according to some, initially called the “Free Syrian Army” (FSA) and later the “Syrian National Army” (SNA).

In 2018, Erdoğan described the FSA as “a civilian formation just like the Kuvayi Milliye forces in our War of Independence”... In 2019, he said that the Syrian National Army was “the brave ones, the mujahideen there who both defend their own lands and continue this struggle together with our Mehmetçik against those who attack our country.”

As far as we have followed, while the PKK/YPG/SDF drags its feet and plays for time, the first to be integrated or made to integrate into the new Syrian administration was the FSA/SNA, and one of their commanders, Fehim Isa, was made Deputy Minister of Defense and appointed as Northern Region Commander.

Our questions are these:

Can Jolani, a product of the US-British-French, disobey them and carry out an operation against the SDF with his army that Israel has razed to the ground?.. Whether he can or cannot, more importantly, will those we called “like Kuvayi Milliye, brave ones, mujahideen” stand by Turkey again?!

Müyesser YILDIZ

August 20, 2025