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Dani Ellis @lapinesque.com · 26/12/2024

Huge flex by the main SDF spox here, dismissing claims that Turkish-backed forces have taken strategically vital Tishreen Dam by filming himself standing on it "Today is a day of dignity, a day of honour. Because this is not war against a dam, or against a village, this is a war against everything"

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Dani Ellis @lapinesque.com · 20/12/2024

Local journalists in North East Syria are so likely to be targeted by Turkey that their agencies get them to contribute to their own obituaries, while at the same time Western press are in Damascus asking the big questions like if Jolani will allow alcohol and christmas trees.

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Dani Ellis @lapinesque.com · 20/12/2024

Devastated to learn Turkey just killed 2 much-loved Kurdish journalists in Syria in a targeted drone strike. Nazim (left) was the first local journo I met when I joined the RIC. Both were fearless in their reporting from Syria in the face of constant threats to their lives.

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Dani Ellis @lapinesque.com · 10/12/2024

Turkey's SNA forces in Syria are sharing a video of them questioning and then executing wounded soldiers as they lay in their hospital beds. Not posting the video, but this is precisely the kind of thing we expected from Turkish forces based on previously documented warcrimes.

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Dani Ellis @lapinesque.com · 08/12/2024

As details emerge from SDF and local sources, today’s impressive defence of Manbij is proof that a lightly armed but well prepared and highly disciplined defender can inflict intolerable losses on a more numerous & much better equipped attacker, even one with total air supremacy.

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Dani Ellis @lapinesque.com · 08/12/2024

"The era of tyranny is over" Confident statement by NES's defacto foreign minister that follows similarly positive messaging from other noteable leaders. They've kept the democratic confederalist project alive until now, and I am cautiously optimitic they'll continue to do so.

The era of tyranny is over
Today we turn the page on the past and open the door of hope to unify the efforts of Syrians towards a better future based on justice and democracy.
Let us stop the shooting and make dialogue the basis for peace and construction.

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Dani Ellis @lapinesque.com · 07/12/2024

Entering a very dangerous period for Rojava; a massive assault on Manbij is underway. The SNA (opposition faction distinct from HTS) are attempting to capture the city from the SDF by attacking on 3 sides. The SNA have been responsible for some of the most apalling atrocities...

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Dani Ellis @lapinesque.com · 07/12/2024

End of an era in Qamişlo and Heseke as loyalist areas come under SDF control. Many large posters of Assad, lots of Zahreddine too, and a really amateur statue of Hafaz on the corner of the park. All will be pulled down over the coming days. Photo from my first full year in Rojava, 2019.

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Dani Ellis @lapinesque.com · 04/12/2024

The Kurdish Red Crescent are actively calling for donations. They are currently the only NGO providing aid to the 200,000+ refugees arriving into Tabqa and Minbij, and will inevitably be responsible for building longer-term camps for them. Please donate if you can.

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Dani Ellis @lapinesque.com · 04/12/2024

3. Khasham Pocket This is a small region East of the Euphrates that was nominally under SAA control since ISIS were pushed out. In reality it has been the main base of IRGC-backed groups that have been conducting regular raids and rocket attacks on the SDF and coalition bases. Image

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Dani Ellis @lapinesque.com · 04/12/2024

Some of these areas have a sizeable presence of small SDF units conducting ambushes and raids on the SNA advances. There's already videos confirming 30+ SNA dead from these. This goes for Deir Hefir and the villages around Minbij that the SNA have claimed.

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Dani Ellis @lapinesque.com · 04/12/2024

Şêx Meksûd (N.Aleppo) is considered a fortress and a sizeable SDF presence will remain there as long as there are people to defend. This map released by HTS is broadly accurate - SDF maintain control over the neighbourhood and still have units North of Aleppo to harrass SNA.

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Dani Ellis @lapinesque.com · 04/12/2024

West of Minbij the SDF was spread over a large area with long supply lines (partially through SAA-held territory) and saliant at Tel Rifat stretching deep into areas under SNA. It was considered to costly to mount a defence and so a withdrawal was the most sensible option...

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Dani Ellis @lapinesque.com · 04/12/2024

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Dani Ellis @lapinesque.com · 04/12/2024

Honestly this is the single most comprehensible introduction to current situation in Syria and I wish I'd seen it 7 years ago. It's now my default response when a friend or family member asks me what's going on 'over there'.

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Dani Ellis @lapinesque.com · 30/11/2024

Hard to explain to my friends that haven’t spent time in Rojava but if a single photo could describe the last 6 years of my life it would look something like this. twitter.com/AliiAmmarrr/...

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Dani Ellis @lapinesque.com · 24/11/2024

Heading to Tal Temir in the Springtime. Abdulaziz mountains in the distance.

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Dani Ellis @lapinesque.com · 23/11/2024

$250 billion is equivalent to 57 days of NATO’s aggregate 2024 defence expenditure. In fact the US on their own could pay the extra $250bn out of their defence budget and still have the highest defence expenditure on Earth www.bbc.com/news/live/c8...

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Dani Ellis @lapinesque.com · 23/11/2024

My first holiday in 6 years. Quite a change from Al-Hasakah

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Dani Ellis @lapinesque.com · 23/11/2024

Cooling off the in Euphrates, Raqqa, Syria.

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Dani Ellis @lapinesque.com · 22/11/2024

The final lie is possibly the most absurd: Not only is the public, repeatedly-stated goal of those in NE Syria *not* separatism or division, but Turkey themselves occupy more than 10% of Syria, where they have instituted the Turkish language, currency and education curriculum.

Final frame from the BBC's documentary "Life at 50˚":

"In a statement, the Turkish government told the BBC: Legitimising 'Rojava' and a 'Kurdish homeland' violates UN resolutions on Syrian territorial integrity and won't contribute to a peaceful future."

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Dani Ellis @lapinesque.com · 22/11/2024

... and, along with all its main tributaries, has been extensively dammed by successive Turkish governments. Take a look at this satellite image with border lines turned off and tell me where the border between Turkey and Syria lies:

Satellite image of the border between Syria and Turkey, clearly showing that North of the border, where the Euphrates river has been dammed, land has been extensively irrigated, severely constricting supply to Syria in the South.

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Dani Ellis @lapinesque.com · 22/11/2024

The second, that 'poor water management' has contributed to water shortages, is actually almost true, but not for the reason that Turkey implies. In fact it is Turkey's own malicious water policies that underpin this crisis. The source of Syria's largest river, the Euphrates, is in Turkey...

Penultimate frame from the BBC's documentary "Life at 50˚":

"In a statement, the Turkish government told the BBC: Poor water management has contributed to water shortages."

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Dani Ellis @lapinesque.com · 22/11/2024

The first lie, that the PKK 'militarises' facilities has already been rejected by the UN's own findings, but publicly available satellite imagery and local news reports cover in detail the nature of the destroyed facilities and the fact those killed working at them were all civilians.

Frame from BBC's documentary "Life at 50˚" showing a statement from the Turkish government, saying:

"In a statement, the Turkish government told the BBC: It has a right to self-defence against the PKK, which militarises civilian facilities. Turkey follows international humanitarian law & puts civilian safety first."

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Dani Ellis @lapinesque.com · 21/11/2024

Inspired by @jamesstout.bsky.social spotting the first one in the wild.

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Dani Ellis @lapinesque.com · 20/11/2024

Dusty trip home from Şededî

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