“Even though the PKK is considered a terrorist organization by the United States, and is on the same list as ISIS, ironically here in Makhmour they’re supported by Coalition airstrikes…”
Remember the images of the “Kurdish warrior women” that were so popular in social media late in 2014 and early 2015 when ISIS and Syria were beginning to dominate the news cycle? One New York photographer decided to visit Iraq and Syria to see for himself just what things were like with the Guerilla Fighters of Kurdistan — who, he says, believe warriors should be well-read intellectuals.
Watch this video. Take half an hour to take a look at some ground truth (at least one man’s interpretation of it). It’s damn sure worth your time (see “chapter list” below) and the photography is just fucking brilliant.
“Portrait photography has a way of humanizing even the most distant of situations.”
Timestamps
00:00 – Intro, photographer departs Yew York City
01:31 – Preparation in Sulaymaniyah, Iraqi Kurdistan
02:15 – PKK Guerrillas in Makhmour
05:41 – Crossing the border into Syria, YPG/J Guerrillas in Rojava
07:19 – Interview with YPJ members
09:07 – Daily life on a YPG/J base and photoshoot
10:13 – Clash in Tel Tamer, dead ISIS fighters
12:38 – Interview with American YPG Fighter “Fat Jack” in Tel Tamer
13:44 – Tel Hamis liberation, guerrillas living in abandoned ISIS base
16:38 – Urban exploration of abandoned ISIS base
20:28 – Overview of humanitarian crisis on Sinjar mountain
23:10 – ISIS suicide VBIED attack inside the besieged city of Sinjar
25:14 – Funeral of YBŞ guerrilla fighter in Sinjar
26:23 – Yezidi refugees and Shingal Resistance Unit
28:37 – Outro and closing thoughts
29:19 – Funeral of British YPG soldier Konstandinos Erik Scurfield
30:38 – Credits
If you’re interested, you can read the whole story right here.
Thank you for that.
I expected a more hipster viewpoint…. This dude did it right. Awesome video.