David Phillips: The reality of Turkey's occupation in Syria, and human rights violations in Nagorno Karabakh
A recent New York Times article titled “In Turkey’s Safe Zone in Syria, Security and Misery Go Hand in Hand” has been called out by a number of experts who say it whitewashes Turkey’s occupation of Afrin in Syria and the removal of Syrian Kurds from the area. Expert David Phillips joins The Greek Current to explain why this report is so problematic, and to give us a picture of the situation on the ground in Afrin and in Turkish controlled parts of Syria. We also look at David Phillips’ latest article on the international community’s failure to protect civilians in Nagorno Karabakh from human rights abuses.
David Phillips is the Director of the Program on Human Rights and Peace-building at Columbia University. Phillips is also a former senior adviser to the UN Secretariat and US State Department, and the author of the books The Great Betrayal: How America Abandoned the Kurds and Lost the Middle East, and An Uncertain Ally: Turkey Under Erdogan's Dictatorship.
You can read the articles we discuss on our podcast here:
In Turkey’s Safe Zone in Syria, Security and Misery Go Hand in Hand
NYT accused of whitewashing Turkey’s Afrin occupation
The Failure To Protect Civilians In Artsakh
Greece protests to Turkey over research vessel
Athens protests new Turkish Navtex for hydrographic survey
Attica’s ICUs approaching full capacity
Experts seen leaning towards extension of Attica’s hard lockdown