By Polla Garmiany

MAINZ, Germany – Kurds and non-Kurds in Europe welcomed the liberation of Shingal by Peshmerga forces, some even celebrating after more than a year of mourning for a hometown lost to the Islamic State group (ISIS or ISIL).

“I am so happy about the liberation of Shingal, this is the home of my grandparents, this is the home of my parents and this was the place I was born,” said Meriwan Khalaf, a Kurd who now lives in eastern Europe. The 39-year-old is planning to return to Kurdistan soon to help rebuild the city.

Several thousand Kurdish soldiers took part in Operation Free Shingal, which evicted ISIS from Shingal on Friday, after a massive three-pronged Peshmerga offensive the previous day in which hundreds of militants were reported killed.

The city’s liberation was not just of strategic importance, cutting ISIS supply routes from Raqqa in Syria to Mosul in Iraq, it was also of huge emotional importance to the Kurds. That is because of the immense suffering of Shingal’s Yezidi Kurds, who were murdered and enslaved in the thousands after the ISIS invasion in August last year.

After the ISIS invasion, Kurds around Europe staged large demonstrations to highlight the plight of Yezidis.

Cem Ozdemir, head of the German Green Party and member of the German parliament, tweeted on Friday: “Shingal city finally liberated from ISIL. Great day for Yazidis and Kurds.”

Liberal politician Tobias Huch posted on Facebook: “Down with the ISIS flag! Shingal is free!”

At the Federal Congress in Giessen, arranged by the Kurdish Community in Germany, many lauded the Kurdish troops, but also called for social and political improvements in the region.

Jan Ilhan Kizilhan, psychologist and professor at the University of Mannheim, said: “The fight has been won on the battlefield, but now a social victory has to come. All parties have to reconcile so that the Yezidis can live in peace after hundreds of years of persecution.”

In the German city of Mainz, a big party was organized by a group of young Kurds.

“Finally we can laugh and cheer again,“ said Ayla Makhmuri. “The war is not won yet, but the victory in Shingal makes us so happy. I have a friend whose family managed to flee the terrorists as they attacked Shingal. Now they can go back to their homes. Even if the houses are destroyed, it is still their home.”

Apart from securing the city, the other main objective of the Shingal operation was to create a buffer zone south of the embattled city to protect it from future assaults, as declared by the Kurdistan Security Council.

“This is great! This is just great!” enthused Pavel Alaka, a 27-year-old Kurd in Paris, who eplained during the Shingal operation that he had a friend taking part in the battle.

“He told me that they will liberate the city within hours and that I should tell my Yezidi friends that Kurdistan has not forgotten them. I am so proud of our forces. May god bless them all,” said Alaka, who has roots in Mahabad in Iran.

Shingal lies in the so-called disputed regions of northern Iraq, which also include cities like Mosul, Kirkuk or Mandali. Both the Kurdish and the Iraqi governments lay claim to governing these regions.

RUDAW