While the public once again focused on the war with the operation launched by Russia against Ukraine, the masculine mind that reveal itself through women which is one of the most vulnerable groups targeted by war. The fact that the social media is jammed with posts saying, "We should welcome Ukranian female refugees" along with photos of female soldiers serviced with a headline 'Beautiful, attractive Ukranian soldiers" once again brought the existing sexism to the agenda.

 

However, the reality is that the destruction brought on by the war mostly affects women and children, and that the forms of violence they are exposed to, including rape on their migration routes, belong to the recent past. Journalist Lindsey Snell, who witnessed the devastation caused by the war that escalated with the civil conflict that started in Syria in 2011, and researcher and journalist Meghan Bodette, the founder of the "Lost Afrin Women Project", shared both their experiences of women living in the region to the Mesopotamia Agency (MA).

 

JOURNALIST AS A WITNESS

 

Drawing attention to the regions under the control of El- Kaide and Heyet Tahrir el Şam (HTŞ) and Turkey and Syrian National Army (SNA), journalist Lindsey Snell underlined that the women in these regions lead lives of subservience and said: "It’s a luxury for a journalist to be able to parachute into a warzone, stay for a week or two, and leave with stories to publish and praise for bravery. These glimpses of war are nothing compared to the endless trauma suffered by civilians who are trapped in them.  I think my experiences and the time I’ve spent with these communities aren't a real reflection of what life for like is women in them. I'm a Western journalist, so the things I was allowed to do, things as seemingly minor as being in cars and houses with men are things local women wouldn't be allowed to do. I wouldn’t minimize their suffering by claiming the many trips I’ve made into war zones voluntarily were damaging to me."

 

A DARKNESS THAT REPEAT ITSELF

 

Stating that a handful of women were placed in low-level government positions by the HTS and the SNA, but it was a gimmick, Snell said: " In reality, women in these areas are rarely out of their homes. They suffer domestic abuse and have no recourse. As the younger generation ages in areas without proper, consistent education, illiteracy is on the rise, and due to the priority male children get over female children in terms of schooling in these areas, it’s a problem affecting females disproportionately. This is a darkness that repeats itself."

 

Speaking about the zones under the control of the Kurds, Snell said: "Women in the YPJ have agency. Women in the AANES have agency. Women hold real positions of power, and the gender equality in terms of access to education is exponentially better. The gender equality there is exponentially visible."

 

AFTER ISIS

 

Snell who visited the cities once controlled by ISIS, following the defeat of ISIS, Snell said: "People in cities in Iraq and Syria post-liberation were full of pride and relief. The relief aspect was obvious, since the terrorist group oppressing them for years was finally gone. And by pride, I mean that even in cities without much in the way of resources, there was a collective joy in every small improvement made, whether it was a library reopening or a road being repaired. Women in areas occupied by ISIS were certainly happy when ISIS was removed. But I think all women in Syria are aware that the threat of attack by Turkey and their SNA mercenaries is very real and could send them back to square one."

 

SNELL WAS ABDUCTED BY EL-NUSRA, HANDED OVER TO TURKEY

 

Stating that she was abducted by El- Nusra front while following a story and handed over to Turkish soldiers to be held in a prison in the Turkish city of Hatay without being able to consult with a lawyer or a translator, Snell said: "The most damaging part of that experience came when I was released from prison and learned that so many of my journalistic “colleagues” had been disparaging me and rationalizing Turkey’s actions in imprisoning me. As a journalist, I’d say it made me a lot less trusting.

 

BODETTE: WOMEN ARE THE FIRST TO BE TARGETED

 

Stating that the gangs that targeted North and East Syria attacked the women first, whom they see as 'victims', Researcher and journalist Meghan Bodette said: "The entire world saw the atrocities that ISIS committed against women and girls across Syria and Iraq. When Turkey and its proxy militias invaded and occupied Afrin, Serekaniye and Tel Abyad, they targeted women as well. Women are left behind to support their families when their husbands and children are killed fighting on the front lines. Around the world, war and the displacement and poverty that it causes puts women at greater risk of violence and discrimination as well, and this has been true in Syria. "

 

THE PIONEERS OF THE STRUGGLE

 

Drawing attention to the fact that despite the attack on women, women were the first ones to rise up, defend their communities and advance North and East Syria’s revolutionary values in the face of these difficult circumstances, Bodette said: "Before 2012, Kurdish women in Syria organized in secret. They led the revolution and participated in the new government it set up from its beginning. Some of the first laws passed by the administration in late 2012, when it was just months old, were reforms to discriminatory Syrian laws that disadvantaged women. Women fought in every major battle against ISIS, from Kobane to Deir Ezzor. Many of these campaigns, including the battle for Raqqa, were led by women commanders. And women have organized to support displaced families, families who have lost relatives, women and children who are victims of domestic violence, and other populations often left behind during war. The revolution in North and East Syria may be the first time in history where the status of women has advanced so quickly, in so many different capacities, despite so many challenges that in other circumstances have stood in the way of political or social advancement. On the ground, both the extent of what women have accomplished and the scale of the obstacles that they continue to face are very clear."

 

VICTORY OF LIGHT OVER DARKNESS 

 

Interviewing a lot of women in the period, Bodette told how impressed she was with the two women who refused to leave Kobané while it was being seiged by ISIS: "In Kobane, I met two women who had refused to leave during the ISIS siege. One was working with the local administration at the time and the other with Kongra Star. They reminded me that Kobane Canton declared autonomy less than a year before ISIS attacked. They had few resources and little experience in governing even in the best of times—let alone any knowledge on how to deal with a genocidal terrorist group set on destroying their city and eradicating its people. But they managed to evacuate the civilians who wanted to leave and prepare logistical and moral support for the YPG and YPJ fighters defending the region. It’s easy to mythologize the victory at Kobane, because it was perhaps the most clearly defined victory of light over darkness of our time. The beginning of the end of ISIS. But the stories of people who participated in the resistance are an important reminder that its was the effort of everyday women and men—who chose every day to fight back despite having no idea what the outcome would be or if they would survive, and who managed extremely limited capabilities as best as they could—that made the difference."

 

BELIEF AND DETERMINATION

 

Stating that one other thing that effected her the most was her interview with the women in Qamishlo Martyrs’ Families Council, Bodette told that another side of the war against ISIS that is ignored outside of Syria is that more than 12 thousand YPG, YPJ and SDF members that lost their lives, leaving countless grieving families behind. Bodette said: "Twelve thousand people from YPG, YPJ and Syrian Democtratic Forces lost their lives in this war. Some of the women that I spoke to had lost their husbands, others had lost their children, some had lost multiple relatives. Many had worked in the Autonomous Administration before; others hadn’t worked at all. They told me how the Council supports every family in the region who had gone through the same thing— regular meetings, education and activities for children, all kinds of services addressing both material and social needs. When I asked them what they wanted the world to know, they called for peace and warned about the impact of so much death and destruction on a society’s future. But they also told me that, despite everything, the people of North and East Syria defend their revolution until the end if they have to. To this day it’s hard to find words to describe what it felt like to listen to them. "

 

THE MISSING WOMEN OF AFRIN

 

Bodette who followed the women who were abducted in Afrin under the control of the groups backed by Turkey, is the founder of the project called 'Missing women of Afrin'. Underlining that every family in Afrin has a story, Bodette said: "While I haven’t spoken to the families of victims of kidnappings and disappearances within the scope of the project, I have spoken to many people from Afrin who have since left. They are very concerned for their friends and families who remain there. People in Afrin, particularly Kurds and non-Muslim religious minorities, can be targeted by Turkish-backed groups for any reason. Some people who have left Afrin even avoid speaking out publicly about these crimes because they fear that these groups may target their relatives who remained in retribution. Some women who have escaped from occupation prisons in Afrin have shared their stories with me themselves. While I can’t provide details for the sake of their privacy and security, they described truly egregious human rights abuses that no person should be subjected to, including systemic torture and other exceedingly cruel, inhumane and degrading treatment. Their testimonies are consistent with reporting from the United Nations (UN), local journalists, and human rights monitors—if anything, they suggest that conditions on the ground in Afrin are even worse than is being reported."

 

WITNESSING A WAR

 

Explaining the process in which she followed a war as a journalist and a researcher and its effects, Bodette said: "Thankfully, I was never in any particular danger in North and East Syria. Of course, there are always risks, and certainly being on the ground there and seeing the impacts of the war firsthand, one is very aware of those risks. I interviewed members of the HSNB near Tel Tamr, which is shelled by Turkey and the SNA almost every day, and traveling from Raqqa to Kobane we passed close to the front lines near Ain Issa, where the situation is similar. But the security conditions were good when I was there, and the AANES is far and away the most secure area of Syria overall. At the end of the day, the risk I take on as a researcher is nothing compared to the danger that the people and communities I met there have faced for years, simply because they dared to stand up for their values and build a new society. It would be wrong for me to be afraid around such courageous people. And when you meet these kinds of people and have the chance to hear and report their stories, you almost forget that there’s anything to be afraid of in the first place! No matter the risks, I’m grateful that I was able to go to North and East Syria and share developments there with the world, and I certainly plan to continue doing so."

 

Underlining that the victory of women and their gains became more and more visible in time while she was following the developments in the region, Bodette told that meeting the women in the cities that had been occupied by ISIS in the past was incredibly powerful. Bodette continued as follows: "These women weren’t politicians or fighters before the war. They struggled for years just to survive and take care of their families under the control of perhaps the most brutally misogynist extremist group in the world. And then, once ISIS was defeated, rather than simply go back to their normal lives, they decided to organize and demand freedom. They are living proof that a mass movement for women’s liberation is possible anywhere. At the Women’s House in Manbij, where I heard from many of these women about life under ISIS and the process of building a women’s movement in the aftermath of war, I remember one member had brought her young daughter with her to our meeting. I realized that there was a generation of little girls like her who would grow up seeing their mothers as political activists, seeing all kinds of women as leaders in their society, and who would have more rights because of the work of generations before them. I hope that that girl, and all children in North and East Syria, can have that future. That is a real victory."

 

 

MA / Gözde Çağrı Özköse