Kurds Provoked Confrontation With ISIS in Iraq: Report

Assyrians who fled Al Hamdaniya gathered in the Assyrian center in Ankawa (photo: Radio Ashur). (AINA) -- On June 25 Kurdish fighters clashed with ISIS in the town of Baghdede (AINA 2014-06-26), an Assyrian town 20 kilometers southeast of Mosul, causing 50,000 Assyrians to flee (AINA 2014-06-26).

Baghdede is the Assyrian name of the town. It is also known as Qaraqosh in Turkish and al-Hamdaniya in Arabic.

A report issued by the Assyrian Federation of Sweden asserts the Kurds provoked the confrontation by entering Sunni Arab villages with bulldozers and attempting to dig trenches. The report states that Kurdish forces, known as the Zerevani militia, arrived on June 24 and began digging trenches in the eastern part of Baghdede. On June 25 they entered the Arab villages, which led to clashes between the Arabs and the Kurds. The Arabs called ISIS and other groups near Mosul for support. The fighting quickly escalated and the two sides began shelling each other.

The Arabs contacted Catholic Archbishop Youhana Boutros Moshe and asked him to convery a truce offer to the Kurds. The Arabs told the Bishop they were fighting the Kurds, not the Assyrians. The commander of the Kurdish militia rejected the truce offer and told the Bishop to tell the Arabs they must leave Baghdede for the shelling to stop.

AINA contacted several sources on the ground in Baghdede to verify this account. According to AINA'sources, the Kurds

were building a trench around Baghdede and parts of it went through Arab villages

did not allow Arab patients to go into Baghdede for medical treatment

told all government employees not to go to work

killed some Arabs

The report by the Assyrian Federation of Sweden concludes that this was not an attack initiated by ISIS, but that ISIS and other groups came to the aid of the Sunni Arabs shortly after Kurds entered their villages.