Exodus Rojava
We returned to northern Syria to document one of the biggest episodes of ethnic cleansing in recent history: that of the Kurds in Syria. Andoni Lubaki and Karlos Zurutuza have developed the project “Exodus, seek refuge in the rubble” for Euskal Fondoa.
THE CONTEXT
In January 2018, Ankara occupied the Kurdish-Syrian enclave of Afrin following a joint offensive by the Turkish Army and jihadist cells. The so-called Operation Olive Branch resulted in 300,000 displaced Kurds who lost their homes. On October 9, Turkey again launched a similar operation, Spring of Peace, now over another Kurdish-Syrian border territory. United Nations data point to more than 200,000 newly displaced people. The nightmare repeats itself, but it is only the reflection of a cruel reality: that of the ethnic cleansing of the Kurds of Syria.
THE PROJECT
Making a hidden reality visible in the eyes of the general press involves displaying coverage in multiple formats. These have been our tools: 1.- A photographic exhibition A collection of 40 photos that testify to the punishment that the Kurds of Syria are suffering: from the war front to the “ghost” towns; from refugee camps to abandoned schools where thousands of displaced families are crowded together. They are fragments of a collective nightmare in which its protagonists run for their lives to end up spit on the mud.
1.- A photographic exhibition
A collection of 40 photos that testify to the punishment that the Kurds of Syria are suffering: from the war front to the “ghost” towns; from refugee camps to abandoned schools where thousands of displaced families are crowded together. They are fragments of a collective nightmare in which its protagonists run for their lives to end up spit on the mud.
Photographer: Andoni Lubaki
2.- A documentary
Fatma is a 22-year-old Kurdish university student. She is from Afrin but has lived in Qamishli since Turkey occupied and destroyed her village in 2018. A year later, Ankara is launching a new offensive, this time on the region where Fatma is trying to start from scratch. The young Kurdish woman has found in painting a form of escape.
Director: Karlos Zurutuza
3.- A series of articles and reports
In the national and international press In addition to multimedia, we still like to tell stories on paper.
Jot Down
“Correr, soplar la ceniza, seguir”
Gara
Sobrevivir al futuro
“No pararán hasta acabar con nosotros”
Los últimos cristianos del Jabur
Ara
“No pararan fins que acabin amb nosaltres”
Middle East Eye
Stuck in limbo: the displaced residents of Syria´s northeast
Deutsche Welle World
War in Syria drives out Christian community
5W
Huir sobre un lienzo rasgado
Argia
Amesgaiztotik ezin esnatu