Anarchic update news all over the world - 12 April 2017

Today's Topics:

   
1.  Turkey, Kara Kızıl [Red And Black] Istanbul - No
      hesitation and loud # NO (tr) [machine translation]
      (a-infos-en@ainfos.ca)
   
2.  France, Alternative Libertaire AL #271 - Police violence:
      Hocine died for nothing! (fr, it, pt) [machine translation]
      (a-infos-en@ainfos.ca)
   
3.  anarkismo.net - Tabqa Dam: The key to Capturing Raqqa by
      Ercan Ayboga with Farah Azadi (a-infos-en@ainfos.ca)
   
4.  wsm.ie: #STRIKE4REPEAL DEMANDS THE REPEAL OF THE 8TH
      AMENDMENT (a-infos-en@ainfos.ca)
   
5.  wsm.ie: March this Saturday - The water charges were not
      defeated at any Oireachtas committee (a-infos-en@ainfos.ca)


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Message: 1



We are on the edge of a precipice, a struggle determined by the oppression and chaos of 
society, whether it is called as istibdat, istlamdat, fascism, dictatorship or a 
combination of them. The next referendum will be shortly called "the actual situation" 
throughout this article, with the goal of legitimizing this situation with yes. This 
initiative is very open, contrary to all kinds of laws, rules and customs. The actual 
dressing of the legitimate suit is crucial for the permanentization of this situation, and 
moreover, it will play a crucial role in the transfer of the works of yes to the "forward 
actual situation" (such as an illegitimate child born from the actual situation and the 
mating of "advanced democracy"). In every initiative of centralizers, At least a 
significant part of the masses are searched for because it is difficult to manage them for 
long periods of time with absolute pressure.

If this was not the case, this referendum would not have been done any more, and the 
actual situation would be maintained. Therefore, under this change to be made at the 
superstructure, there is a very concrete power consolidation account that can lead to 
bitter consequences. The results of the continuous prolonged OHAL and KHKs and governance 
are as tangible as they are, if yes, the results of the "presidential government system" 
will be at least as concrete as possible, a permanent one in practice, It will be 
transformed into a management system with a Decree Law.

Some people object to this analysis, suggesting that everything is happening from one side 
to the other. Why do such ministers think that power does not settle for the actual 
situation and makes such a move? Maybe they think like this we are our ideological 
relatives carrying the Traveling spirit inside: There is a massive base movement and 
mobilization threatening the actual situation in a concrete and serious way, and this 
energy is wanted to be destroyed by withdrawal! Unfortunately, we have to remind these 
comrades that such an eruption moment has not existed since about the end of 2013. During 
the trip, there was a time for a referendum on the future of the park, of course we 
opposed it because it would be a great folly to risk it by drawing it to a position of 
voting that is concrete. If we consider this example to be larger, of course, This option 
could of course be preferred in circumstances where the social revolution is much more 
mature, on conditions of much more favorable conditions, at the moment of mobilization, 
for example, where the majority of the people boycott the referendum and the elections, 
thereby shaking the legitimacy of the actual situation. But it is clear that this is not 
the case, and we have to act in the world we are in, not in the world we want to be. The 
course of society is shaped not by the revolutionary minorities, but by the masses, which 
are usually not revolutionary, what they see as legitimate and what they consent to. 
Therefore, even though the most advanced and uncompromising views on the level of ideas 
should be propagated, the level of consciousness and motivation of the masses should be 
observed at the level of action (if it requires participation of the masses of action). At 
the moment of mobilization, for example, on conditions where the majority of the people 
would boycott the referendum and the elections and thus shake the legitimacy of the actual 
situation, of course this option could be preferred. But it is clear that this is not the 
case, and we have to act in the world we are in, not in the world we want to be. The 
course of society is shaped not by the revolutionary minorities, but by what the 
non-revolutionary masses usually see and do not legitimate. Therefore, even though the 
most advanced and uncompromising views on the level of the idea should be propagated, the 
level of consciousness and motivation of the masses should be observed at the level of 
action (if the action requires mass participation). At the moment of mobilization, for 
example, on conditions where the majority of the people would boycott the referendum and 
the elections and thus shake the legitimacy of the actual situation, of course this option 
could be preferred. But it is clear that this is not the case, and we have to act in the 
world we are in, not in the world we want to be. The course of society is shaped not by 
the revolutionary minorities, but by the masses, which are usually not revolutionary, what 
they see legitimate and what they consent to. Therefore, even though the most advanced and 
uncompromising views on the level of the idea should be propagated, the level of 
consciousness and motivation of the masses should be observed at the level of action (if 
the action requires mass participation). Of course this option could be preferred. But it 
is clear that this is not the case, and we have to act in the world we are in, not in the 
world we want to be. The course of society is shaped not by the revolutionary minorities, 
but by the masses, which are usually not revolutionary, what they see as legitimate and 
what they consent to. Therefore, even though the most advanced and uncompromising views on 
the level of the idea should be propagated, the level of consciousness and motivation of 
the masses should be observed at the level of action (if the action requires mass 
participation). Of course this option could be preferred. But it is clear that this is not 
the case, and we have to act in the world we are in, not in the world we want to be. The 
course of society is shaped not by the revolutionary minorities, but by the masses, which 
are usually not revolutionary, what they see as legitimate and what they consent to. 
Therefore, even though the most advanced and uncompromising views on the level of the idea 
should be propagated, the level of consciousness and motivation of the masses should be 
observed at the level of action (if the action requires mass participation). Is shaped by 
what it consents to. Therefore, even though the most advanced and uncompromising views on 
the level of the idea should be propagated, the level of consciousness and motivation of 
the masses should be observed at the level of action (if the action requires mass 
participation). Is shaped by what it consents to. Therefore, even though the most advanced 
and uncompromising views on the level of the idea should be propagated, the level of 
consciousness and motivation of the masses should be observed at the level of action (if 
the action requires mass participation).

We may think that boycott is the most meaningful attitude on the contrary: the present 
referendum today is not a "fair and free" but it is still a true vote, the actual results 
differ. Perhaps if yes, then those who are settled may become truly "theater", as in 
dictatorial regimes, where the dictatorship is 90% odd votes cast. Of course, when it 
comes to totally fake elections, the correct attitude will be boycotting, at least from 
the outside, it's a fraud. A hint about this can be tried; We will see if we find 
ourselves in such a situation that now they will make the boycott come from their hands to 
criminalize the boycott in addition to the no to this time. But the day is not that day, 
today,

And there are those who believe that the situation is desperate, no matter what we do, in 
a manner of cataclysm, provocations, and "yes". Here, from a political standpoint, is a 
remarkable weakness, traces of a pessimistic, defeated, unconscious mood that we can call 
"learned helplessness". Totally natural and understandable, but harmful. There are of 
course cheating, underbelly and danger of irregularity, but despite these, we seem to be 
worthy of winning, so it is better for us not to give up, but also to make a favor for 
them. Their ways are definite and should not be underestimated. As far as we are 
concerned, like the small teams who win the match against the big teams, we have to "beat 
the hakemi". Our social struggles have never been fair and will not happen,

The anarchists (and some Marxist revolutionaries) are the anti-parliamentary principle? 
First of all, let me remind you, this is not an election, it is a referendum. We do not 
elect a councilor or president. Nevertheless, I will advocate the use of forceful debate: 
The most important historical examination of the anarchist opposition to elections was 
given in the last election of 1936, before the Spanish Civil War. In this example, there 
is a moment of social revolution, and anarchists have influence over millions of members 
within the anarchocentric mass organization CNT. In this election, as always, great 
polemics were broken between tactical voting advocates and principal boycotts (even 
individual voters split between their own choices in their own heads), and finally CNT, In 
practice, liberated its members for voting and foresaw the majority of the popular Front, 
which consists of bourgeois liberals, socialists and Stalinists, allowing the Popular 
Front to defeat the right front with a 0.5% (half a percent) vote difference. Against this 
left-wing ruler, General Franco launched a counter-revolutionary military coup, and 
against it the Spanish Civil War and the Spanish Revolution were fired at the same time, 
partly through direct armament of the people, partly through the left-wing government. If 
the CNT had made a solid boycott campaign with millions of members, the Right Front would 
certainly win. Was this alternative scenario still an attempt at revolution, or was it 
that the fascists who came from the legal path did not immediately bombard the rising 
revolution, who finally won? This history is only analogous to promoting the context of 
the boycott debate and to show how little in common with our current situation (and yet in 
practice, the boycott has not dominated!). Among the Marxists between 1917 February and 
October 1917 the support of the Provisional Parliament and the Kerensky government on 
Russia was discussed in the context of one of the greatest revolutionary moments of 
history. Similarly, in the same years, the opposition between communists and social 
democrats in Germany was experienced in the context of the German Revolution, which was 
actually proclaimed socialist republics in a few regions but then suppressed. The 
anti-parliamentary attitudes that are true in these discussions (we do not engage in 
tactical or strategic distinctions) are all taken over the revolutionary massive upsurge, 
the danger of withdrawing the revolution, In the context of the danger of taking the 
revolution to an alliance with a wing of the bourgeoisie. We assume that most sharp 
attitudes on this subject arise from the fact that the lessons from these special periods 
are raised to the dogma status and tried to be applied in every situation. However, since 
these historical examples do not overlap with the conditions we have in us, we can not 
imitate them when determining our attitude in the next referendum. The antagonism of 
parliamentarism, in essence, a classless society, can not be established by first seizing 
the bourgeois state superstructure and then collecting directives. It is not an absurd 
idea that all the forms of government in which the bourgeoisie is dominant, that all 
politicians are the same, or what is happening on the level of government institutions and 
laws, makes no difference to us.

The establishment of a classless society with the discovery of charity, the revolution, 
destruction of nations and so on. Desires will certainly not happen. You do not even have 
to say these things, it's just a matter of knowing. By setting out that leaving no women 
will not liberate women, will not end the exploitation of wage labor, will not end 
ecological degradation, and so on. It is also unwise to try to neglect the no by 
presenting choices from the maximalist program. It would be a blunder to arrive at the 
need to boycott these arguments. Let the total revolution or the great progressive 
achievements become a necessary condition in the concrete conditions we are in, which is 
not enough, even to reverse the no-oppression regime. Yes, if it comes out, And even now, 
most of the challenges that are being made in the open-legitimate field are barely able to 
get underground. If it does not, there is a good chance that we will be able to open up a 
valuable range that will provide more favorable morale and conjuncture conditions for us 
not to get worse or to get better. We will not try to map this out and how to map the 
details over the branches that all prospects and no astrologer will predict, because it 
will not be a good thing as long as no one comes out. The effort is to open up the 
prospects for positive, that's all. There is no guarantee of victory in any fight. We will 
not try to map this out and how to map the details over the branches that all prospects 
and no astrologer will predict, because it will not be a good thing as long as no one 
comes out. The effort is to open up the prospects for positive, that's all. There is no 
guarantee of victory in any fight. We will not try to map this out and how to map the 
details over the branches that all prospects and no astrologer will predict, because it 
will not be a good thing as long as no one comes out. The effort is to open up the 
prospects for positive, that's all. There is no guarantee of victory in any fight.

We have recently elected to experience the June 2015 election. In this election, a 
parliamentary arithmetic emerged that the AKP could not establish a single-party power, 
and the RTE had been forced to think of the lost black ground for days. However, the 
coalition dance, followed by the bourgeois parties, was overtaken by the chaos of the 
chaos that has been overshadowed by the long, insincere peace process, and the November 
2015 results of the chunky cloudy sun of the June elections were possible. For the 
revolutionary minorities, activists and intellectuals in this process, the greatest 
mistake for all of us is not mobilization for the emergence of a relatively positive 
picture of June, In the period between June and November, there was a passive approach 
(though the bombing terrorism on the prospects and the nature of the chaos that the direct 
targets of this attack on the attack were also effective) Has not been revealed. If this 
mistake is not to be repeated, the fighting should be raised after a no that can be 
removed from the referendum. Contrary to parliamentary opposition, no one of us will 
certainly not be in the position of final judgment on April 16th. We have an advantage 
over the election of June for the formation of a tactic from below, this is not a choice 
of government but a regime or rejection,

There is no guarantee that no will come out. The process is moving uphill, uneven, under 
censorship and pressure conditions. Those who argue that the main trap is to participate 
in the referendum and that the real fear of the ruling party is to be avoided from the 
policemen is that the massive pressures on the people making the no campaigns (threats 
such as bullets, bulletins, Paramilitary formations), and do not they see the berries (no 
terrorists, no planted trees, etc.)? Or when they see that all the possibilities of the 
state, the media, the troll army and a complex ideological biad and lynching apparatus are 
constantly mobilized by violating all the law for yes, "we call to say no to us, we do not 
eat" Are they really saying? Or, what do they think about the unprecedented pespa in the 
international dimension, which comes from Europe and is thought to increase the rate of 
yes, owing to the votes that will be mobilized with the nationalist agony inside?

The truth is obvious, plain. It is the first and closest task to raise the NO to prevent 
the actual state from becoming permanent and to prevent the forward actual state from 
passing the verbose, no effort should be made to win the game. Of course, no good will be 
enough for a positive transformation, nor will it come to mean the end of everything. It 
will be a struggle. But on what conditions? This is the question. What we have to do is 
not to think of our own narrow needs with faulty motives, sectarianism or identity 
anxiety, or to take refuge in thoughtfulness and memorization, but to apply the right 
thing in this period without hesitation and obligation. The final analysis is not the 
"what is the anarchist", but the question of what is right, the question of what is anarchist,

It is astonishing that some anarchists have laid out texts that appear to have been 
submitted in advance, even if it is a referendum to say yes or no, but not a parliamentary 
choice in which the ruling party of the future will be elected. The fact that so-called 
libertarian thinkers such as Noam Chomsky, Murray Bookchin or Gün Zileli have not been 
taken to the castle of their positions on the election and referendums, or even posting 
themselves out of anarchism in a clumsy way, is not questioned as to why they came to 
these postures using these symbol thinkers, free consciences, Sad point.

Anarchists also participated in referendums in which one option was clearly worse than the 
other (that is, the other was clearly better) (in such unclear referendums, for example 
the 2016 Brexit or Italian referendums, naturally there was no clear position or 
boycotted). For example, in Ireland, the anarchist Workers Solidarity Movement in 2015, 
the gay marriage made a yes vote campaign in the legalization proposal (the result was yes 
with 62%). In the 2002 referendum to extend the ban on abortion in Ireland, the same 
organization made a no-vote campaign, perhaps making a decisive contribution to the 
rejection of this barbaric offer by 50.4%. Needless to say, for these anarchists, the 
referendum in both cases was seen as neither the end nor the end of the struggle, but it 
continued afterwards. Our upcoming referendum is even more vital than the two referendums 
in Ireland, and perhaps the numbers will be knife-back as the 2002 referendum in Ireland. 
This sense of responsibility must be effective in our vigor.

Lost in the last period, many are paid, the price is not the end of the great and bad 
trends. In a world where we will not lose any more, we have to take care of the smallest 
possibility, the smallest move, to say that this is a stop. If this referendum is made, 
what you get from the polls, we promise you, a generation or a lifetime over you, your 
comrades and your children will proudly say "I said no" in the future. Say no if you 
choose not to, left, that has now turned into a stereotypical remorse 2010 referendum (she 
was criticized so naturally yae'ci since those days, but HDPE predecessors focused also 
had a much larger group abstentionist, after a few years a strong "will make you the head" 
You will likely feel a similar regret). Our blink is a definite, unwavering and loud voice 
no. Sometimes it is not a solution to mislead people and to steal hidden secret charity in 
action by saying a boycott in discourse, thinking that an anarchist can fall into 
anarchist (mostly individual) at times. We think that anarchist attitude is to say no and 
to give no votes. Well, let's get a big reaction from some memorizing anarchists. In 
answer to them we say: "We talked, and our soul was saved". We think that anarchist 
attitude is to say no and to give no votes. Well, let's get a big reaction from some 
memorizing anarchists. In answer to them we say: "We talked, and our soul was saved". We 
think that anarchist attitude is to say no and to give no votes. Well, let's get a big 
reaction from some memorizing anarchists. In answer to them we say: "We talked, and our 
soul was saved".

Black Red Istanbul

http://www.karakizilistanbul.org/bildiri.php?git=oku&id=26

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Message: 2



Among the many crimes committed by the police are the murder of 23-year-old Hocine Bouras, 
who died from a bullet fired at close range. The responsible policeman of course benefited 
from non-places. ---- Hocine Bouras was 23 years old. He died in handcuffs on the A35 
motorway in Colmar on 26 August 2014, with a bullet in his head shot at close range by a 
voluntary gendarme, during his transfer from the Elsau prison in Strasbourg to the TGI Of 
Colmar. Hocine, being held in pre-trial detention, was to be heard because he was 
suspected of attempting to steal a Quick-Ball pistol. So much for the "  past offenders  " 
of the victim. ---- The gendarme will first be taken into custody and then placed under 
investigation by the public prosecutor. The facts will be legally qualified as " voluntary 
violence causing death without intention to kill  ." Self-defense is not then established 
or "  made  ". The gendarme, pleading self-defense, if not charged, will be placed under 
the status of assisted witness. Thus benefiting from a judicial construction, his guilt 
will be ruled out a priori, from the beginning of the investigation. Justice will then 
rule twice in his favor dismissing the prosecution as abandoning the proceedings, thus 
stopping the proceedings, leaving the family to his questions and his bereavement.

The version of the two gendarmes present is as follows: Hocine, handcuffed in front, 
suddenly became hysterical (never the investigation can establish it) and assaulted the 
gendarme seated beside him to steal his gun. The gendarme driver would have stopped the 
vehicle and tried to control Hocine with his truncheon, without success. He would then 
have taken out his weapon, firing at point-blank range on Hocine.

Drawing of the little sister of Hocine

Although the judicial reconstruction was not able to corroborate the gendarmerie version - 
demonstrating further that the driver could have managed the situation without using his 
weapon - a major element raised in the conclusions was passed over by the judge . A 
witness testified that Hocine was handcuffed with her hands behind her back, completely 
reversing the official version. In this way Hocine could never have committed what 
justifies the thesis of self-defense. This testimony, totally reversing the version of the 
gendarmes, has never been taken into account. Hocine is dead, his DNA tracks are on the 
weapon and the respective testimonies of the gendarmes are concordant (for their own 
benefit). Self-defense is detained, dismissed, case closed.

Minutes false, from agents of "  law enforcement  " are almost routine in this kind of 
story: testify against the victim and reverse the roles is the best way to guard against 
any legal response without Speak about disciplinary sanctions. Similarly, they do not 
hesitate to destroy or modify evidence directly at the scene of their crime to facilitate 
the production of the judicial discourse that will clear them of all responsibility.

Procession to support Hocine during the Mobilization of March 19 in Paris

Finally, we no longer count the implausible defenses that lead to non-places. A cop who 
does not hesitate to plead self-defense, even when he has murdered a person from a 
distance of 20 meters, disarmed in addition, it is already seen. Self-defense is the joker 
of the murderous policeman.

The murder of Hocine is not an isolated case. The list of people murdered by the police is 
long, very long, and the names it contains are almost exclusively names of racialized 
persons (not white) [1]. There is no shortage of examples.
The uncritical media coverage of these murders gives a large place to the police and 
judicial discourse (on behalf of the sacrosanct "  objectivity  " no doubt) and never 
deals with the racist underlying problem. Everything is put in place so that the murder 
becomes invisible and falls into oblivion. The perpetrators are never convicted or 
punished. In their environment, they are considered victims, even heroes.
Map of police-reported violence in the media (2005-2015)

Hocine's family had the courage to testify publicly and to mobilize so that the truth 
about his death would be made. She has always asserted her confidence in the trial and 
beyond in justice. She thus appears more worthy than the French justice which rejects it 
by decreeing the guilt of Hocine.

Meanwhile, the judicial struggle continues, the family having decided to appeal in 
cassation. [2]No justice, no peace ! For Hocine and all victims of police crimes !

Paul (AL Alsace)

[1] More information on the website National Observatory of police violence

[2] Article of the collective blog truth and support for Hocine Bouras on cassation

http://www.alternativelibertaire.org/?Violences-policieres-Hocine-mort-pour-rien

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Message: 3



An interview with Sinan Deniz, a Kobane-based ANF journalist, who is embedded with SDF 
forces in their battle to take the Tabqa dam and liberate Raqqa from Islamic State 
control. ---- On the 5th of November 2016, the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) launched an 
extensive military operation called ‘Wrath of Euphrates' to liberate the city of Raqqa and 
its surroundings from the Islamic State (IS). Raqqa is the de-facto capital of the IS 
controlled regions in Syria, and its fall would significantly weaken their rule. ---- The 
SDF is a broad military coalition of Arabs, Kurds and other people groups in northern 
Syria and considers itself as a democratic defence force against reactionary forces within 
Syria including IS and the Baath regime. One of its principle units is the predominately 
Kurdish People's Defence Units (YPG). Led by the YPG, the SDF launched its offensive to 
re-take Raqqa, codenamed operation ‘Wrath of Euphrates', from the town of Ain Issa, 50 km 
north of Raqqa.

Since the launch of the operation, three campaigns have been successful in capturing big 
areas around the city of Raqqa and bringing it under SDF control.

On March 21st, a fourth campaign was launched aimed at the liberation of the Tabqa dam and 
its reservoir. Just 50 kilometres upstream from Raqqa city, the dam sits at a strategic 
crossroads, and its capture will prove a death knell for the IS. This campaign has, as of 
this writing, successfully liberated large parts of the dam and encircled the city of 
Tabqa, liberating the Safsafha villages that surround it.

Sinan Deniz, a Kobane-based journalist, working with the Firat News Agency (ANF), is 
embedded with the SDF directly behind the frontline. The following is an interview with 
Deniz about the ongoing Tabqa operation.

Why did you decide to embed with the SDF units on this particular campaign for the Tabqa dam?

Well, I decided to follow the ongoing campaign to liberate Tabqa because its capture would 
be a crucial step in the eventual liberation of Raqqa. You see, Raqqa and Mosul are the 
two most important locations for the IS, and I knew this would be an important battle 
against a group that has not only threatened people of Syria, but the region and, really, 
the world. Because Raqqa is the IS's capital, it relies on Tabqa, and specifically the dam 
there, for water and electricity as well as revenue. If, and when, the SDF are able to 
completely capture the dam, they will essentially have their hands at the levers of the 
whole region.

I am primarily based in Kobane, a city a few hours to the north of Tabqa. But when I heard 
the SDF were going to launch their offensive to re-take Raqqa, in November 2016, I 
travelled to Ain Issa--or Bozanê in Kurdish--a small city just north of Raqqa that had 
been liberated by the YPG in June 2015. The SDF launched their operation for Raqqa, ‘Wrath 
of Euphrates', from that village and I have been embedded with the SDF and reporting on 
events from that time.

Then, on the 21st of March, I got wind that the SDF were about to launch a new campaign to 
re-take Tabqa. Knowing the importance of the dam to the region and what success there 
could spell in terms of a final defeat of the IS, I made immediate arrangements to travel 
to cover the story.

The next day I travelled to the small village of Suweyda, just north of Tabqa city, where 
the SDF had set up a makeshift press centre. Several days later, on the 27th of March, SDF 
forces along with a handful of journalists embedded with them and myself, crossed the 
Assad lake at night by boat to the west side of the dam's reservoir.

There was a real sense of nervous excitement by all of us as the operation proceeded at 
lightning pace. Also, because we knew we were just kilometres away from areas heavily 
patrolled by the IS, and SDF forces in previous attempts at liberating these areas had 
come under heavy, heavy attack. After successfully crossing the lake, I stayed on with SDF 
forces as they worked to liberate areas west and south of the dam under IS control.

I am now based in a reasonably secure location, and travel daily to the front and to some 
of the newly liberated areas. Whilst in those areas I try to investigate what happened in 
the days previous, interview fighters or civilians, and also report on how the operations 
are faring.

Many here in Syria, as well as people throughout the world, will know that this offensive 
is one of the most important since the start of the Syrian war in 2011. This operation has 
the potential to end IS rule in Syria, and hopefully the region, and will be a significant 
turning point in a brutal war that has created enormous suffering. It is very important 
that there are journalists here reporting on the events and keeping the world updated on 
its developments.

What is the importance of the city of Raqqa within the context of Syria today?

Simply put, it is very important. The southern part of the city is situated directly on 
the Euphrates river and is a crucial agricultural area for the whole of the Syrian state.

The city is also important related to its diversity, as though Arabs comprise most the 
population; Kurds, Assyrian and other ethnic minority groups also live there.

Raqqa, and its surrounding areas, are also significant geopolitically. The reason for that 
is because it's an industrialised region with significant reserves of petrol. With the 
construction of the dam project beginning in 1968, the reach of these industries increased 
substantially. You see, Tabqa is a dual-purpose dam, meaning that it also has a 
hydroelectric power station and provides electricity and well as drinking water and a 
substantial irrigation supply to the region.

Though, the importance of the dam is also what made it vulnerable to and an early target 
of the Syrian opposition. The dam first came under opposition control in February 2013, 
and later when that opposition solidified into the IS, they utilised the dam's resources 
to build up Raqqa as their capital. They even engaged in ‘dirty deals' with the Syrian 
regime, their sworn enemy, selling them the largest part of the electricity generated by 
the dam, which became one of their chief revenue streams.

Raqqa then became the economic centre for the IS as well as the base for their political 
and military operations. So, as you can see, this battle is all or nothing for them. If, 
and when, the ‘Wrath of Euphrates' is successful, if not tangibly, but symbolically IS 
will be finished.

Can you explain in more detail how the SDF crossed over the Euphrates? Photographs 
generated by the IS on social media showed fighters in parachutes. Were those accounts 
genuine or faked?

On the evening of the 21st of March, the day of the launch of the campaign, SDF forces 
packed into transport helicopters, carrying military equipment, and crossed the lake just 
west of the dam. At the same time, and in loose cooperation with the SDF, an international 
coalition (IC) against the IS, launched an air attack against IS positions in the area, 
targeting specifically the places where the SDF had planned to land.

The SDF/IC attack completely overwhelmed the IS, and their resistance was easily quelled 
without any loss of life. With this initial stage of the campaign realised, SDF ground 
forces were able to cross the river by boat the very next morning.

There was no need for any forces to use parachutes, and any accounts of that are false.

Can you tell us how the Tabqa campaign evolved from that point?

Well, after the SDF ground forces were able to cross the lake, they immediately began 
liberating the towns and villages surrounding Tabqa, whilst at the same time beginning to 
encircle the city. The SDF attacks had forced the IS to flee and these areas were 
liberated without much effort. In the days that followed, the areas that came under the 
protection of the SDF began to stabilise, and the SDF took the decision that they could 
push on towards the north and west, and finally, just yesterday, they have completely 
encircled the town.

The SDF did encounter some fierce clashes with the IS, especially when trying to capture 
the dam, but they overcame them and liberated the most parts of the dam and surrounding 
regions. The contingent of SDF forces, which crossed the dam reservoir, coming from the 
southwest of the city, took the airport without much difficulty. The airport had 
previously been used as a strategic air force base for the Syrian army before coming under 
IS control. Capturing this airport was just another step in destroying their hold on the 
region.

Despite their rather comprehensive defeat, the IS continue to launch counter attacks 
against SDF forces, but thus far these have been deflected.

What is the composition of the forces fighting the Tabqa campaign? And how involved are 
the YPG and YPJ?

The SDF is a coalition force made up of the YPG and YPJ (Women's Defence Units) as well as 
different mainly Arab military forces. The YPG/J have been involved in the SDF and this 
operation from its inception.

 From my perspective, ten days into the campaign, participation of fighters from different 
forces is fairly balanced between the various ethnic and religious communities of northern 
Syria and this composition hasn't really changed during the campaign.

I meet SDF forces from the YPG/J and other coalition partners almost daily throughout the 
liberated areas I travel to, and all have been engaged in the different campaigns of the 
operation.

What is your daily interaction with the SDF like?

Overall, my interaction with the SDF is very positive. Journalists embedded with the SDF 
remain in very close proximity to the forces-you know, we are with them at the frontlines 
of battles, stay with them at the military bases, and we are regularly in contact with 
them about the campaigns' progress.

I also find that individual SDF fighters are generally very open to speaking to the press, 
and their overall approach and demeanour is congenial. To me that exemplifies in many ways 
the ideology of the larger movement, and their strong commitment to the liberation of 
their people and their lands. Though the SDF are primarily a military force, what 
underlines that is a sincere commitment to values that had inspired the early days of the 
revolutionary resistance in Syria.

For the YPG/J, who are more directly connected the Kurdish freedom struggle, participation 
in the military units is merely one feature of a popular struggle that has, for over forty 
years, attempted to nurture horizontalist social structures that value democracy, gender 
equality and a cooperative economy.

And being with the fighters day in and day out, you begin to see and to realise that those 
values and commitments are not simply trolled out at press conferences and then tucked 
away at war-time. They are embodied in the culture of the units, and they inform how they 
interact with one another, but also with the civilians from the areas they liberate.

So, I would say that their sincerity in tangible, and it creates an affable energy between 
the fighters and ourselves[the journalists], and really enhances the feeling of solidarity 
between us.

It is also important to note that the SDF forces are mainly composed of people from the 
areas themselves, or from nearby regions. In that way, they can see themselves in the 
villagers and know, intimately, their struggles. This is in part why the SDF have gone to 
lengths to minimise any damage done to structures, especially houses in the areas they 
liberate. The areas around Tabqa are primarily rural farming villages, and housing 
structures are built using traditional methods of clay earth and wood, and are more 
vulnerable. But fortunately, very few structures were damaged or destroyed during this 
campaign.

I cannot say the same, however, for Tabqa Airport which came under heavy bombardment is 
almost entirely demolished. Much of the airport was destroyed following its capture by the 
IS in 2014. But later, whatever remaining sections had endured were then devastated when 
the Syrian regime forces went up against the IS in the region in 2014. As fighting has 
basically been ongoing since then, bombed-out buildings and destroyed vehicles, planes, 
and roads have been left to rot.

Can you tell us more about the specific role played by the IC in the Tabqa campaign?

Sure, well the campaign to liberate Tabqa was executed in close coordination with the IC, 
made up of many countries' forces but with the US at the helm. The IC's contribution has 
mainly focused on airstrikes and other kinds of air support and with a limited number of 
armoured vehicles provided recently. There are no IC soldiers fighting on the ground. The 
air campaign relies heavily on information provided by SDF ground forces, and whenever the 
SDF comes under heavy bombardment from the IS, the IC is there to provide air support, 
artillery and personal carriers. The SDF has worked in cooperation with the IC for more 
than two years, and the partnership has remained militarily valuable with no serious 
tensions between members of the IC.

How does the SDF view the success of operation ‘Wrath of Euphrates' in terms of the 
military situation on the ground?

The SDF see the operation as extremely effective given that they have recently been able 
to fully encircle Tabqa and liberate almost the whole dam and all the areas surrounding 
it. Though the operation took months to plan, and had to proceed with near surgical 
execution, all efforts have paid off and every single campaign has reached its objectives.

A careful approach has proved successful, especially in light of the fact that there has 
been very little loss of life amongst the SDF forces and civilians in the areas. Also, as 
I mentioned early, destruction to property has been extremely limited, and it is clear 
that people from the areas support in a growing number the SDF and this operation.

In fact, following the liberation of these areas, many local people have started to join 
the ranks of the SDF - thousands, since the beginning of the offensive.

The SDF is really concentrated on liberating all Tabqa which is happening as we speak as 
fighters have encircled all of the city. Many in the SDF are cautiously optimistic, 
recognising that as we push towards Raqqa, the IS will continue to fiercely resist and 
will deploy their best technology to do so.

Can you tell us more about the relationship between the local population and the SDF, 
especially considering the forces entering some of the heartlands of the IS?

Yes, with the liberation of towns like Minbic, Gire Spi, Tel Abyad, Sarin-all 
predominately Arab-many of these local people have joined the SDF ranks. The SDF has put 
the figure of new fighters at somewhere exceeding 20,000. This does not include Arab 
populations living in and around the liberated areas of Raqqa city itself, who have also 
joined in thousands in the last months.

Once civilians commit to join the SDF they are required to undergo a period of combat 
training and military education. This period is imperative, not simply for the safety of 
the new recruits, but also in terms of the continued success of the operations themselves, 
as many join with little or no prior combat experience or skills. The implementation of a 
period of training is also a result of the SDF's learning from mistakes made in the past 
and trying to correct those-where they had seen new recruits, without enough practice in 
the battlefield prove weak in clashes with the IS.

The considerable numbers of new recruits, as well as the welcoming attitudes of the newly 
liberated local populations confirm that a majority of the population supports the SDF, 
and their political perspective and objectives.

I think it is also a testimony to just how much people have endured under the IS-both how 
much they suffered, but how resilient they are as well. The strength of people's hope 
despite what they've endured remains, perhaps, the bravest aspect of this revolution. And 
it is the fuel that allows the political imagination to burn brightly in the hearts and 
minds of civilians and soldiers alike-to reach for this collective vision of a new, just 
and peaceful society that gets closer with each passing day.

Can you tell us about the current condition of the Tabqa dam? How badly it has been 
damaged in the recent fighting?

Yes. As I talked about before, the dam has been crucial to life in this region. In 
addition to supply an important amount to the electricity of North Syria, it is also 
responsible for supplying clean drinking water for the entire city of Aleppo! And it also 
irrigates many ten thousands of hectares of land, you know, it's a real backbone for 
agriculture here. So, the dam is really an economic imperative, in addition to some of its 
other benefits, like serving as a military barrier due to the body of water that surrounds it.

Due to the dam's size and strength, whomever controls it is also able to rule the people 
and lands surrounding it, which was the case when it was under the control of the Baath 
regime and IS. However, in resistance to that, sort of, negative history, the SDF and the 
Democratic Federation of North Syria (which is composed for an important part of Rojava, 
the mainly Kurdish populated area) decided to declare the dam a resource that was to be 
used for the benefit of all people in Syria, and mutually and equitably managed - not, as 
it had been, as a weapon to dominate others.

In terms of where the campaign is at now, the SDF has thus far taken control of more than 
half the dam, at its northern and central parts.

Intense clashes over the last several days have led to a bit of a stalemate concerning the 
dam itself. Given the strategic importance of the dam, SDF forces have proceeded very 
cautiously, with meticulous efforts to limit loss of life or damage to the dam itself.

Some days ago, the IS alleged on its Twitter page, that the dam was damaged after IC 
airstrikes, during a period of dangerously high water levels-which would have created 
deadly flooding in the area. However, these claims appear to be largely unfounded. In 
fact, the SDF commissioned an assemblage of engineers to release pressure on the dam by 
opening its floodgates, which it had done under heavy shelling from the IS.

The SDF maintain that it is actually the IS whose attacks, especially against the 
engineers, have caused the most potential damage to the dam.

Nonetheless, as you can see, the dam is, in a symbolic sense, a barometer for conflict. 
The liberation of the remaining sections of the dam will spell the liberaiton of the town 
of Tabqa, and will be a definitive turning point in this war.

A few days ago, the IS again used social media to allege that they were able to use an 
armoured drone to attack SDF boats crossing the dam's reservoir. Is this also IS 
propaganda or is it real?

Yes, the photographs are genuine, and I know because I was at the boat which was the first 
target of this attack. Thankfully, though there was some damage to the boat, nobody was 
killed. The IS continued to attack SDF boats by drone, but they were not able to do any 
lasting damage. The SDF has since taken measures so that this sort of attack cannot be 
repeated.

Can you describe the current situation for civilians living in the newly liberated areas?

Yes, well the IS often attempt to impede the local population from leaving their homes as 
war approaches because they know many will side with the SDF, and even possibly join their 
ranks.

For the last few years the IS has been feeding the local people on a steady diet of 
propaganda against the SDF. But people are easily able to see through the ‘alternative 
facts' presented by the IS, and often approach the SDF fighters with a joy and relief that 
appears genuine. Many weep - they know the liberation of their village or town means an 
end to the fascist rule of the IS over their lives. In areas with larger populations, 
people walk away from the IS and towards the SDF in waves, and it's quite a sight. The 
literal walk towards freedom of these people is the emblematic march towards freedom for 
the country. And they carry that feeling not simply in their minds or hearts, but across 
their faces-even their eyes smile.

Meeting people whose experience concretises ideals I myself hold, and I know the larger 
movement here-well, it's been some of the most moving experiences of my life.

What are your plans over the next days and weeks?

I plan to remain embedded with the SDF and continue to document this operation. I feel I 
it is my duty to be here and to document this moment in history, and continue to transmit 
to my people and to the world. I very much hope to be reporting soon from a liberated 
Tabqa town-and then Raqqa! I will remain here until I am there to witness the very moment 
of the liberation of Raqqa, and hopefully the closing chapter of a terrible blip in human 
history. We will answer its brutality and terror with the strength of our solidarity and love.

Related Link: 
http://moderndiplomacy.eu/index.php?option=com_k2&view=item&id=2434:why-taking-the-tabqa-dam-is-important-in-the-fight-against-isis-and-retaking-of-raqqa&Itemid=154

http://www.anarkismo.net/article/30149

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Message: 4



The WSM supported and took part in the recent ‘Strike4Repeal' on International Women's Day 
(March 8th). The Strike's purpose was to demand that the government stop stalling and 
introduce a referendum to repeal the hated 8th Amendment that denies access to abortion. 
The Strike was hugely successful, resulting in an enormous, energetic mobilization, which 
peaked at lunchtime to block off O'Connell St. bridge and shutdown Dublin city centre. 
---- We anarchists of the WSM have been fighting Ireland's anti-abortion access laws since 
the 1980's, a period when books and magazines were being banned because they had contact 
details for clinics in Britain. We continue to demand that access to termination be an 
option to be decided on by a pregnant person as part of a free health service.

The struggle to repeal the 8th amendment continues.

Here are 8 reasons why it should never have been introduced, and the referendum to repeal 
it should be delayed no longer:

1. World-Class Tyranny

Ireland has one of the most restrictive abortion laws in the world more so than places 
like Syria and Afghanistan. Only Malta is more restrictive within the EU.

2. Democracy & Equality

No woman of childbearing age has been allowed to have a say in her reproductive rights. 
The last vote was in 1983. This country claims to be democratic yet denies women basic 
medical services and control of their bodies. In the Irish law a woman's life is equal to 
the foetus. This is not equality.

3. Exile

Up to 12 women a day travel abroad for an abortion but not every woman can travel. Migrant 
women and asylum seekers, women with disabilities, minors and predominantly working-class 
women are discriminated against here. The abortion ban only increases class divides and 
helps to perpetuate the cycle of poverty.

4. Abortion Pills

The other option is to use abortion pills but it is illegal to obtain them, and 
increasingly pills are being seized by customs. Women who take them are at risk of being 
reported to the police if they have complications or need follow up care.

5. Trans, Non-Binary, & Intersex people

Trans men, non-binary people and some inter-sex people need access to abortion too. For 
some trans men, being forced to carry a pregnancy to term (or at all) is in serious 
conflict with their identity as men and can be traumatic as it forces them to do something 
with their bodies that feels alien to them. Trans people are practically invisible in 
Irish law and their struggle for bodily autonomy is a part of the struggle for 
reproductive rights.

6. Rape

If a woman is raped in this country and is caught having an abortion she will do more time 
in prison than her rapist. A woman faces a jail sentence of 14 years if she has an 
abortion whereas the maximum jail term for rapists is 10 years. Women who are raped are 
not entitled to abortions and face the trauma of being blamed for assault by a sexist 
police which assumes that it's a woman's responsibility not to get raped (i.e. don't wear 
the wrong clothes, don't drink too much, don't go out alone, etc.)

7. Fatal Foetal Abnormality

A woman is not allowed to have an abortion in Ireland even in cases of Fatal Foetal 
Abnormality. Instead Ireland offers prenatal hospices where women can wait out their 
pregnancies as they wait for the foetus to slowly die inside them. Moreover, unless the 
pregnancy itself is a direct threat to the mother's life she may not have an abortion and 
can be refused treatment for other conditions if it threatens the health of the foetus. 
Pregnant women with cancer have been refused both abortion and chemotherapy at a doctor's 
prerogative.

8. Cruel and Unusual Punishment

Forcing a woman to carry a pregnancy against her will has been called ‘cruel, inhumane and 
degrading' by the UN Committee on Human Rights. Abortion is legal in Ireland only if there 
is a high risk of death to the woman. Suicide is grounds for an abortion but the woman has 
to be assessed by up to 6 doctors. These doctors have the power to decide if a woman will 
be allowed an abortion. These doctors must be HSE approved and this panel only includes 1 
psychiatrist. And the Ms.Y case has proven that the ‘protection of life' provision offers 
no protection at all to suicidal women.

More on Strike4Repeal

http://www.wsm.ie/c/abolish-water-charges-wsm-newsletter-apr2017

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Message: 5



This Saturday at 2pm, Right2Water has called a national anti-water charges protest through 
Dublin city starting at Connolly and Heuston Station.  Many are seeing this as the final 
shot of the long war against the water charges, they have been suspended for the last year 
because a mass boycott made them impossible to collect. ---- That boycott was part of a 
massive decentralised campaign that also saw hundreds of direct actions as communites 
around the country blocked water meter installations, leading to hundreds of arrests and 
dozens of ongoing prosecutions.  And Saturday is just one of many huge mobilisations that 
have brought as many as 80,000 onto the streets on multiple occasions. ---- As it stands 
an Oireachtas committee guided by the EU Commision is researching "the complex nature of 
water charges in Ireland". It's their job to make recommendations to the government about 
the future of Irish Water. It's our job to tell the government what we think about Irish 
Water and we need you with us.

Through protests and direct action we have seen the water charges shift from the average 
household paying 500 euro to it being temporarily suspended. Resistance to Irish Water has 
pressured certain politicians into a position where they must publicly call for scrapping 
Irish Water and most importantly helped to develop a huge amount of popular support from 
people to completely scrap Irish Water.

 From its announcement, the installation of water meters, the massive non-payment of bills 
(around 70% boycotted the last bill), to these current stalling tactics, continual active 
resistance is the only way we can prevent the theft of our water.

It should not come as a surprise that the government continues to look for some way to 
quietly maintain Irish Water, allowing for future governments to steadily increase 
metering and charges - currently working under the guise of charging "water abusers" while 
the state has already wasted millions of taxpayers' money on consultants alone.

It is only through flexing our collective muscle that we can force the government to scrap 
Irish Water and the privatisation plan once and for all.

http://www.wsm.ie/c/water-charges-not-defeated-oireachtas-committee

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