The Kurdish National Council in Syria (ENKS) has issued a renewed call for unity among Kurds in Rojava, emphasizing the urgent need for the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) to withdraw from the region. The ENKS believes this step is essential to safeguarding Kurdish interests and fostering stability in the area.

Suleyman Ösö, head of the ENKS, highlighted the council’s longstanding commitment to Kurdish unity in an exclusive interview with BasNews. He identified the PKK’s influence as a significant threat to regional safety and a major impediment to achieving unity between Kurdish factions.

“The ENKS was established in 2011 to promote Kurdish unity during the Syrian revolution,” Ösö explained. “We rejected any alliance with the Syrian regime because dictators cannot serve the interests of the Kurdish people. Unfortunately, the regime handed over Kurdish areas to the PYD [Democratic Union Party], which has further complicated efforts toward unity.”

Ösö accused PKK-affiliated forces of undermining peace and dialogue in Rojava through aggressive actions such as burning ENKS offices, arresting its members, and suppressing its activities. Despite a US-brokered agreement in 2020 aimed at fostering cooperation, he said the PKK and PYD escalated their hostility.

“Unity requires mutual respect and a conducive environment, but the PKK continues to sabotage these efforts,” Ösö stated. “Their actions have martyred many of our members and jeopardized the safety of Kurdish communities, particularly in areas like Kobani, where their presence invites external attacks.”

Ösö called on the PKK to withdraw from Rojava, arguing that their departure would remove a justification for foreign aggression and pave the way for meaningful cooperation. He also urged the PYD to separate itself from the PKK and abandon divisive rhetoric that has long branded ENKS members as “traitors” and “mercenaries.”

“Our priority is to protect the Kurdish people and achieve unity,” Ösö said. “But this cannot happen while the PKK continues to destabilize the region. We advocate for peace and the removal of all threats to our communities in Rojava.”

Concluding the interview, Ösö reaffirmed ENKS’s commitment to dialogue and cooperation, stressing that the council seeks not division but a united Kurdish front to confront the challenges facing their people today.