|
US volunteer dies fighting for Kurds
[ARA News] Syrian Kurdish forces of the People’s Protection Units (YPG) on Sunday announced the death of the US volunteer Paolo Todd [aka Kawa Amed] in clashes with Islamic State’s (ISIS) militants near Raqqa.Todd, born in Los Angeles, California, was killed on 15 January while fighting against ISIS in the Suwaydiya village west of Raqqa, in northeastern Syria. The YPG in an official statement said that the war against ISIS is not only a fight against terrorism, but also a fight for humanity. “My name is Paolo Todd, I am from California, my Kurdish name is Kawa Amed. I came to Rojava to support Kurdish people and indigenous right around the world,” the US volunteer had said in a video published on social media. “We are going to go to the frontline, I will be in heavy weapons unit, and I am very happy to do this to support the Kurdish people and Rojava revolution, long live Kurdistan,” he said. Todd joined the YGP on the 4th of November, 2016. The YPG in the statement praised the ‘martyrdom’ of Paolo Todd and promised to continue their struggle. On 16 January, the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) announced that three western fighters (one British, one Canadian and one American) that have volunteered in the SDF were killed as part of the Euphrates Wrath Campaign, which was launched on 6 November with support of the US-led coalition. “In Syria, our partner forces continue the isolation of Raqqa, clearing more than 3,000 square kilometers since the start of their operations,” Pentagon spokesperson Peter Cook said last week. On Sunday, the SDF said they captured the village of Suwaydiya Kabirah, killing at least 85 ISIS fighters. The SDF have reached the outskirts of Tabqa Dam and they aim to cut off the ISIS supply lines between the two sides of the Euphrates River. Posted by: badanov 2017-01-23 |
| http://www.rantburg.com/poparticle.php?ID=479308 |