Active December 2014–present | ||
Ideology Revolutionary socialism Leaders Bayram Ali (Spokesperson)
Aziz Güler (Commander) † Part of International Freedom Battalion Allies Kurdistan Workers' Party
People's Protection Units Opponents Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant | ||
The United Freedom Forces (Turkish: Birleşik Özgürlük Güçleri, or BÖG) is a joint expatriate militia of several revolutionary socialist organizations from Turkey, active in the Rojava conflict of the Syrian Civil War.
Contents
- Revolutionary Communard Party
- MLSPB DC
- Trkiye Devrim Partisi
- Sosyal syan
- Proleteryann Devrimci Kurtulu rgt
- Sub Units
- References
Inspired by the International Brigades of the Spanish Civil War, the militia was founded in December 2014 in Kobanê within the de facto autonomous region of Rojava in Syria.
The predominant Hoxhaist Marxist–Leninist Communist Party and the Maoist TİKKO did not join the United Freedom Forces, but together with other communist groups from Turkey, Spain and Greece, in June 2015, they altogether formed the International Freedom Battalion.
On 21 September 2015, Turkish BÖG commander Aziz Güler (nom de guerre: Rasih Kurtuluş) was killed by a landmine explosion whilst fighting against ISIL. His body was taken to a hospital in Serê Kaniyê (Ras al-Ayn) to be brought back to Turkey. Turkish authorities refused to allow his body into the country sparking controversy. His family had appealed to the Suruç district governorate, which rejected their application due to an invisible order by the Council of Ministers, and the Constitutional Court of Turkey, which also rejected their requests, before turning to the European Court of Human Rights. Protests against the Turkish authorities were carried out and a Change.org petition gathered 23,738 signatures. After 59 days, Güler's body was able to enter Turkey and was buried in Instanbul on the 22nd of November 2015.
Revolutionary Communard Party
Revolutionary Communard Party (Turkish: Devrimci Komünarlar Partisi, abbreviated as DKP) is a revolutionary socialist group from Turkey. The party is an important group behind BÖG. The party is also part of the Peoples' United Revolutionary Movement alliance in Turkey with the PKK and 9 other groups.
MLSPB-DC
Marxist–Leninist Armed Propaganda Corps-Revolutionary Front (Turkish: Marksist Leninist Silahlı Propaganda Birliği-Devrim Cephesi, abbreviated as MLSPB-DC) is a communist armed group from Turkey. A battalion was created by Devrimci Karargâh and MLSPB-DC named after Alper Çakas, an MLSPB-DC fighter killed while fighting in Rojava. It is also part of the Peoples' United Revolutionary Movement.
Türkiye Devrim Partisi
Revolution Party of Turkey (Turkish: Türkiye Devrim Partisi, abbreviated as TDP) is a revolutionary socialist group from Turkey. TDP is part of BÖG.
Sosyal İsyan
Social Insurrection (Turkish: Sosyal İsyan, abbreviated as Sİ) is a green anarchist and platformist group from Turkey. Sİ was founded in 2013, in Tuzluçayır. Members of the group have influences from people such as Alfredo M. Bonanno, Nestor Makhno, and Pierre-Joseph Proudhon.
Proleteryanın Devrimci Kurtuluş Örgütü
Proletariat Revolutionary Liberation Organisation (Turkish: Proleteryanın Devrimci Kurtuluş Örgütü, abbreviated as PDKÖ) is a communist group from Turkey.
Sub-Units
Multiple sub-units and formations have been formed including: