MESOP FLASH : Arrest campaign among former YPG fighters in Syria’s Amude

25-04-2014 – ARA News – Amude, Syria– The Kurdish forces of the Popular Protection Units (YPG) –the military wing of the Democratic Union Party (PYD)– carried out on Wednesday an arrest campaign among former YPG fighters in the northeastern Syrian city of Amude, 27 km west of Qamishli city.The campaign, which led to the arrest of five former YPG fighters, continued over the last two days. Masoud Zali, Hatim Amki and Mohammed Abdulghani Mustafa (16-year-old) have been arrested by the YPG forces, while the identity of the two other arrested men hasn’t been revealed yet.

A source close to one of the arrested men (who preferred anonymity for security reasons) told ARA News that the arrest campaign was carried out at the orders of the leader of the YPG forces in Amude city, Kawer Bottan.

“Allegedly, the former YPG fighters have been arrested because they had stated in the public that they were YPG fighters even though they had left the ranks of the YPG force,” the source said. A delegation from the families of the arrested men held a meeting on Thursday with the leader of the YPG forces in Amude city at the YPG headquarter (the former headquarter of the Syrian Military Intelligence Department).

“However, those who participated in the meeting, which lasted three hours, gave no details about their meeting with the YPG officials,” the source added.  Notably, the YPG forces in Darbasiyah city, 25 km west of Amude city, arrested in this April family members of a former YPG female fighter from the village of Sheik Fatime in the countryside of Darbasiyah city. Reporting by: Peshwa Mohammed – Source: ARA News