Retribution

PKK – Kurdistan Workers Party. Operates in Turkey. Seeks a Kurdish homeland within the region, including in Turkey. Secular and politically Marxist. designated as terrorists by Turkey, U.S., NATO, etc. primarily attack Turkish Military and Police.

YPG – (YPG is the armed branch of the YPD). Peoples Defense Units. Kurdish Democratic Union Party founded in 2004. The modern-day YPG was formed after the Qamishli uprising in 2004 by the Kurdish Democratic Union Party (PYD).

YPD (Kurdish Democratic Party)- Multi-ethnic group, not seeking a Kurdish ethnic state.

YPK- Women’s Protection Units (offshoot of the YPG).

SDF – Syrian Democratic Force. A military coalition composed of Kurdish, Arab, Assyrian/Syriac, Armenian, Turkmen, and Chechen forces founded in 2015. 60% of the SDF is Kurdish. It is “led” by the YPG. They primarily fight against ISIS, al-Qaeda, Turkey, Arab Nationalist rebels (fighting in the Syrian civil war), and Turkish-backed Syrian opposition groups. The SDF announced, in March 2019, the total defeat of ISIS in Syria from ISIS’ former stronghold of Baghuz. The SDF was then attacked in October of 2019 by Turkey and its allied Syrian Rebels. Turkey warned the U.S. 48 hours prior to the attack occurring and as soon as the U.S. withdrew from the Syrian-Turkish border Turkey commenced its attack. Turkey claimed that the operation’s purpose was to establish a safe zone for the thousands of Syrian Refugees which had fled to Turkey during the long civil war.

KRG – Kurdish Regional Government (in Iraq)

Peshmerga – Armed branch of KRG.

KDP – dominant Iraqi Kurdish Party