Active 2012–present Leading commander for Raqqa operations Rojda Felat Allegiance Rojava Size 24,000 (March 2017) Kobanî commander Meryem Kobanî | Website Official website Founded 2012 Branch Female service units General Commander Nessrin Abdallah Aleppo commander Sewsen Bîrhat | |
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Engagements Syrian Civil WarRojava conflictBattle of AleppoBattle of Ras al-AynKurdish–Islamist conflictSiege of KobanîAl-Hasakah offensiveBattle of SarrinBattle of Sarrin (March–April 2015)Battle of Sarrin (June–July 2015)Tell Abyad campaignBattle of Al-HasakahAl-Hawl offensiveAl-Shaddadi offensiveTishrin Dam offensiveAl-Shaddadi offensive (2016)Iraqi Civil War (2014–present)December 2014 Sinjar offensiveNovember 2015 Sinjar offensive | ||
The Women's Protection Units or Women's Defense Units (Kurdish: Yekîneyên Parastina Jin, YPJ, pronounced Yuh-Pah-Juh) is an all-female military organization, it includes Kurds, other Syrian ethnic groups, and Western volunteers.
Contents
- Kurds female fighters in battle
- History
- Supply
- Military operations in Iraq
- Ideology
- Significance in Syrian Civil War
- References
It was set up in 2012 as the female equivalent of the People's Protection Units (Yekîneyên Parastina Gel, YPG) militia. The YPJ and YPG are the armed wing of the Democratic Union Party (Syria) (PYD), which has taken de facto control over much of Syria's predominantly Kurdish north, Rojava.
Kurds female fighters in battle
History
The organization grew out of the Kurdish resistance movement, and as of late 2014 it had over 7,000 (or 10,000, according to TeleSUR) volunteer fighters between the ages of 18 and 40. By November 2016, the number of Arab and Kurdish YPJ fighters had reportedly risen to 20,000.
The YPJ joined its brother organization, the YPG, in fighting against groups that showed intentions of bringing the Syrian Civil War to Kurdish-inhabited areas. It has come under increased attacks from the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant and was involved in the Siege of Kobanî.
Supply
The YPJ relies on local communities for supplies and food. The YPJ (along with the YPG) received 27 bundles totaling 24 tons of small arms and ammunition as well as 10 tons of medical supplies from the United States and the Kurdistan Regional Government in Iraqi Kurdistan during the Siege of Kobanî.
Military operations in Iraq
The group played a critical role in rescuing the thousands of Yazidis trapped on Mount Sinjar by ISIL fighters in August 2014. One fighter said: "We need to control the area ourselves without depending on [the government] ... They can't protect us from [ISIL], we have to protect ourselves [and] we defend everyone ... no matter what race or religion they are."
Ideology
The YPJ's ideology is democratic confederalism, as propounded by Abdullah Öcalan. Having joined the YPJ, women must spend at least a month practicing military tactics and studying the political theories of Ocalan, including Jineology, a form of feminism also known as the 'science of women'.
The group has been praised by feminists for confronting traditional gender expectations and redefining the role of women in conflict in the region. According to photographer Erin Trieb, the YPJ is a feminist movement, even if feminism is not their main mission. She asserted that "they want 'equality' between women and men, and a part of why they joined was to develop and advance the perceptions about women in their culture".
The influence of the YPJ spread to the Assyrians in Syria when the Bethnahrain Women's Protection Forces was formed as an Assyrian all-female brigade of the Syriac Military Council. Also the al-Bab Military Council, Jabhat al-Akrad and Jabhat Thuwar al-Raqqa have established their own female units.
Significance in Syrian Civil War
Various Kurdish media agencies indicate that "YPJ troops have become vital in the battle against I.S." in Kobanî. YPJ achievements in Rojava have attracted considerable international attention as a rare example of strong female achievement in a region in which women are heavily repressed.