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Our people, the Syriacs (Chaldean-Assyrian-Aramean), as well as the Armenian people are the grandchildren of the survivors of the Ottoman Turkish Genocide that happened in 1915. On the 10th of October 2019, the Turkish army invaded our lands and attacked our people using former ISIS, Al Qaeda and other radical Islamic fighters. These fighters, which are paid by NATO ally Turkey, have committed human rights abuses, declared they will ethnically cleanse the area and support the same ideology as groups like ISIS.

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Dear Sir,
We have always believed that the political solution and dialogue are the most important ways to resolve issues in Syria. We have shown our readiness in this regards and accepted that there will be other solutions with our neighbouring country, i.e. Turkey, regarding border security. However, Turkey disavowed the things that we agreed on and began to attack our peoples in north and east Syria

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On Sunday the 6th of October, 2019, the President of the USA issued a statement giving Turkey the green light to carry out a military invasion into the area controlled by the Democratic Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria – DAA. It appears that this decision was not done in coordination with other International Coalition Partners in the area. More importantly the decision to abandon the DAA and their forces (SDF) that fought alongside the International Coalition Forces to push back ISIS, is a betrayal of the DAA and it‘s people, which compromises not only Kurds, but Christians and Arab tribes that fought together with the USA. This decision will lead to a number of far reaching affects that will cause further instability in the region:

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"Come, from now on we will talk about the Turkey we want to live in together". With this motto to work together for a more equal, fair, free and democratic Turkey, a colorful gathering of Turkish, Armenian, Kurdish and Syriac exiled and/or opposition politicians, artists, journalists, academics and representatives of different ethnic groups convened the conference “The Social Contract Quest for a Democratic Turkey” in Berlin on 21-22 September. The conference was prepared by tens of organizations of which the European Syriac Union was one. In different panels and workshops the attendees discussed perspectives and solutions out of the increasing authoritarian state the Turkish Republic is currently in.

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Giessen - European Syriac Union, ESU Branch organized a demonstration with the participation of Syriac people, religious figures, personalities and Madam Ayfer Gabriel, ESU Co-chair among others in the German city of Giessen. Following the decision of Bethnahrin National Council, MUB to carry out activities and inform international public opinion and Chaldean-Syriac-Assyrian about the fate of Said Malke, Vice President of Syriac Union Party, GHS arrested on August 18, 2013 in Qamishli Airport by Syrian regime and abducted bishops of Syria as Syriac Orthodox Church Bishop Yohanna Ibrahim and Greek Orthodox Bishop Boulos Yaziji. Moreover, following g his arrest, Said Malke has been transferred to Damascus and whereabouts remain unknown to this day.

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On 28-30 June 2017 ESU co-partnered the conference "A Future for Christians in Iraq". The conference was hosted by the EPP, ECH and ALDE European Parliament political groups and took place in the European Parliament in Brussels. Representatives from different political Chaldean/Assyrian/Syriac parties and churches, NGO’s and representatives from the Iraqi government and KRG attended the conference. The main goal of the conference was to give the Chaldeans/Syriacs/Assyrians a platform on an international diplomatic level to support the demand for and Autonomous Region in the Nineveh Plain in Iraq for our Chaldean/Syriac/Assyrian people.

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Geschätzte Demokratinnen und Demokraten, vor 6 Jahren wurden die beiden Bischöfe von Aleppo Yohanna Ibrahim und Boulos Jaziji von Unbekannten gekidnappt. Bis Heute fehlt jedes Lebenszeichen der Geistlichen. Einige Monate später namen syrische Behörden den Vizepräsidenten der Syrischen Union Said Malke am hellichsten Tage gefangen und verschleppten ihn. Es werden keine Gründe seiner Inhaftierung genannt und jeglicher Kontakt unterbunden. Das einzige Verbrechen des christlichen Politikers Said Malke war es sich friedlich für die Rechte der Assyrer-Aramäer-Chaldäer und die Demokratisierung Syriens einzusetzen.

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On Sunday 25 August in the presence of the clergy, Tur Abdin locals and guests from all over Europe and with the service led by Mor Timotheus Samuel Aktaş (bishop of the Tur Abdin region residing in the Mor Gabriel monastery) the church of Mor Yacoub and Mor Barsawmo was opened and consecrated in the village of Kafro of Tur Abdin. Kafro village is in the Tur Izlo region and is one of the Syriac villages in the region which was emptied during the 90s because of security reasons compelling the local population to emigrate to Europe.

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On August 2014, following the capture of Mosul city by ISIS, Nineveh Plains and Shingal region faced similar threat and they had been controlled by ISIS following the retreat of Iraqi and Kurdish Peshmerga forces which lead to the massive exodus of Chaldean-Syriac-Assyrian people from Nineveh Plains and the Yazidis from Shingal and later faced genocide, killings, and abductions.

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After the fires of the last couple of weeks in Northeast Syria and Northern Iraq, recent fires have burned and destroyed (farm)land around the Christian villages in the Tur Abdin region of Turkey. July 27 saw the burning of olive orchards belonging to the Deyrulzafaran monastery (Mardin). Also read: the comments by Evgil Türker (SÜDEF) and Turkish MP Tuma Celik: Fires in Syriac Villages: 'Even if It is Not Sabotage, There is Gross Negligence Süryani Köylerindeki Yangınlar: Sabotaj Olmasa Bile İhmal Büyük

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