Kurdish Federation: Do not let international tensions turn into violence

The Federation of Kurds in the Netherlands is calling on Kurdish people in the country not to allow international turmoil to spread to the Netherlands. The escalating tensions between the Turkish government and Kurdish PKK and YPG fighters are causing a significant amount of turmoil among Kurdish people in the rest of the world.

"We are trying to calm down the emotions in the Netherlands", a spokesperson for the Federation told the Volkskrant. "It makes sense that Kurds in the Netherlands, often with family in Turkey and sometimes in Iraq or Syria, worry and emotions are running high. But we do not want those emotions to lead to violence in the Netherlands."

In a number of European cities Kurdish people have been demonstrating in front of Turkish embassies this week. They are protesting against recent actions taken by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his government - Turkey is currently not only fighting ISIS in Syria and Iraq, but also the Kurdish PKK group and YPG fighters, who are also fighting against Islamic State combatants.

There have also been some demonstrations in the Netherlands, although on a smaller scale. The Kurdish community in the Netherlands consists of more than 100 thousand people. Over the past few days Kurdish-Dutch people have gathered on Dam Square, Schiphol Airport and Rotterdam Central. On Wednesday another demonstration has been planned at the Turkish Consulate in Rotterdam.