The German Bundestag has approved a military operation of the Bundeswehr in Syria on Friday. Earlier this week, the Federal Government already decided on the deployment of up to 1,200 soldiers to the war-torn country for one year, German media reported.
Among numerous problems in the region, intervening countries have to deal with a division among the Kurds, the newspaper wrote. For instance, the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) — the ruling body of the predominantly Kurdish region of Northern Iraq backed up by the US, Germany and Turkey — opposes Russia’s statements about the fact that Turkey operates oil trade with the ISIL through Syria.
At the same time, The Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), a militant organization located in Turkey and Iraqi Kurdistan, is critical of KRG’s position and accuses it of betrayal due to its cooperation with hostile Turkey.
All in all, the gap among the Kurds is difficult to overcome and could add further fuel the conflict in the country. The deployment of the Bundeswehr in the war zone will not contribute to the reconciliation and will only deepen the gap between the conflicting parties, DWN wrote.
Germany is willing to respond to the recent terrorist attacks in Paris and show that the German government will not stay on the sidelines. However, a large majority of Germans fear that the military operation in Syria could negatively affect domestic security and increase the risk of terrorist attacks in their homeland.
According to a survey conducted by the polling institute YouGov, 71 percent of Germans think that the threat of terrorism in Germany will grow as result of the Bundeswehr military operation against the ISIL, while only 18 percent of Germans do not believe in such a scenario.
