Gino Kenny (Dublin Mid West, People Before Profit Alliance) | Oireachtas source

I am sure the Tánaiste will agree that what is unfolding in north-east Syria only compounds the misery of the Syrian people and the persecution of the Kurdish people. It has the potential to create more internal refugees in Syria. Some 60,000 people have already left the affected zone in northern Syria. In a quite incredible statement for a member of NATO and a President of Turkey, President Erdogan stated on Turkish television that he will flood Europe with millions of refugees if the European Union taunts Turkey regarding its interference in Syria. More than 500,000 people live within 5 km of the Syria-Turkey border. The Tánaiste will agree that foreign interference in Syria has created a quagmire of human misery. Some 500,000 people have been killed there in the past eight years. This is one of the worst civil wars humanity has seen. Given the events of the past three days and, in particular, the green light given by President Trump, it is ironic that the Syrian Democratic Forces, SDF, which were trained and armed by the Americans and were fighting ISIS, are now being battered by the Turkish military. This is a betrayal of the Kurdish people by the Americans. What can Ireland and the European Union do to address the situation?

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