Farhad Abdi Shaheen[2] (Kurdish: فەرهاد عەبدی شاهین, romanized: Ferhad Ebdî Şahîn; Arabic: فرهاد عبدي شاهين), better known by his nom de guerre Mazlum Kobane,[3][a] is a Syrian Kurdish military leader, serving as the commander-in-chief[b] of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF).[10][11]
Mazloum Abdi | |
|---|---|
.png) Mazloum Abdi in 2019 | |
| Birth name | Farhad Abdi Shaheen |
| Other name(s) | Noms de guerre: Şahin Cilo, Mazloum Abdî |
| Born | 1967 (age 56–57) Kobani, Syria |
| Allegiance |   Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (2012–present) |
| Service |  Kurdistan Workers' Party (~1990-2011)[1]
|
| Years of service | ~1990–present |
| Rank | General Commander |
| Battles / wars | Kurdish–Turkish conflict Syrian Civil War |
Early life
Ferhat Abdi Şahin was born to Syrian Kurdish parents in Kobani[8][12] around 1967. Trained as a civil engineer at the University of Aleppo,[13] according to Turkish sources, Abdi joined the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) within Syria in 1990 and was imprisoned five times by the Syrian authorities.[14][8][13] During his time with the PKK in Syria, he became a personal friend of PKK leader Abdullah Öcalan.[13] Abdi later conducted terrorism activities in rural areas of Şemdinli, Turkey in 1996.[14]
He moved to Europe in 1997, where he engaged in Kurdish political activities until 2003. That year, he traveled to Iraq, where he was reportedly involved in military operations.[14][9] Turkish sources claim that he served as a member of the PKK high command in 2005.[12][c] From 2009 to 2011/12, he was a member of the People's Defense Forces' (HPG) special operations board.[14][12] In 2011/12, he was dispatched to Syria by the PKK to organize the activities of the YPG in Kurdish-populated regions of Syria, amid the escalating Syrian Civil War.[12]
Syrian war and Kurdish-ISIS war
In August 2014, he was in charge of the negotiations the People's Protection Units (YPG) held in Sulaymaniya with Iran and the United States in order to form an effective alliance against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), after which an alliance with the US was agreed to.[8] Abdi defended Kobani during the Siege of Kobani (Oct. 2014–Jan. 2015), refusing to withdraw despite US recommendations to do so. When his family's house was taken a 3rd time by ISIS in house-to-house fights, and given the increased collaboration with USAF, he requested a strike on his home.[17] As the commander of the SDF, Abdi commands 70,000 troops.[18]
Peace building in the AANES
Abdi has stated that he is open to work with the Syrian government within a federal system that includes the existing de facto autonomous region of Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria.[19] On 29 June 2019 Abdi, as representative of the SDF, signed the action plan of the United Nations aiming to prevent the enlistment of child soldiers in the armed forces.[20]
In the wake of the 2019 Turkish offensive into north-eastern Syria, Abdi has stated his willingness to work with the Syrian regime and Russia and to make compromises with them in order to protect the local population of northeastern Syria from potential "genocide" by "Turkey and its jihadi mercenaries.[18] As part of a deal with the SDF, Syrian government troops have been given permission to enter the cities of Manbij and Kobani in the hopes of deterring further Turkish aggression.[21]
In October 2019, a group of US Senators suggested that the US State Department give Abdi a visa so that he would be able to discuss Syria in the United States. In response, the Turkish Minister of Justice Abdulhamit Gül criticized the US government for treating Abdi as a "legitimate political figure" and indicated that an extradition request had been issued so that if Abdi would enter US territory, he should be detained to be extradited to Turkey.[22]
On October 9, 2019,[23] US president Donald Trump wrote a note to Turkey's president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, offering to mediate between Turkey and the YPG, saying Abdi was "willing to make concessions that they would never have made in the past" and enclosing a note from Abdi. During Erdoğan's November 14 state visit to the US, he returned the letter to Trump,[24] and claimed Abdi was the adoptive son of the imprisoned PKK leader Abdullah Öcalan.[25]
Notes
- For alleged terrorism committed in Turkey by the PKK during this period, as of 2019[update], Interpol has issued a red notice on Turkey's behalf.[15][16]
References
External links
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