The year 2025 is drawing to a close, and as Peoples Bridge, we would also like to review it for ourselves. This is not intended to focus on political developments. These can be read in our dossier “1 Year after Assad”. In this article, we would like to evaluate our work and actions of the year.

In January, in response to the debate about the new rulers of Syria, we organized a lecture in Berlin. Previously, discussions had taken place in the city, particularly in the internationalist movement, about the fall of Assad and the support for HTS. With the lecture, we shared our perspective for a democratic Syria and discussed the role of Rojava in it.

At the end of January, we were invited to Vienna to give a lecture. We examined the Middle East since the financial crisis of 2008 and analyzed the political developments in the region. The focus was on the Rojava Revolution as a result of these political and economic causal connections. In addition, we provided the participants with an overview of the situation after the takeover of power by HTS.

In February, we were able to participate in panel discussions with Young Struggle in London and Manchester. In London, we addressed the history of the Kurdish and Palestinian resistance. We examined the historical connections between the two movements, their causes, and the current state of any possible cooperation.

In Manchester, we discussed the conditions that led to the Rojava Revolution, its achievements, and the current challenges it faces – also in the context of Palestinian resistance. On the panel, YS spoke about youth as a dynamic force of resistance and put concrete practical tasks up for discussion.

For the New Year festival Newroz, which is traditionally celebrated by Kurds and other peoples in Asia, we organized a small Newroz celebration in Berlin on March 21. Together with Young Struggle, we gave a lecture on the cultural and resistant tradition of the festival, ate and danced together.

The year 2025 was also marked by the 10th anniversary of the death of the internationalist fighter Ivana Hoffmann, who became immortal on March 7, 2015, in the fight against ISIS. On this occasion, many comrades actively worked on organizing the 10th Ivana Hoffmann Festival in her hometown of Duisburg. In May, a panel discussion was held for mobilization, in which representatives of Peoples Bridge, Young Struggle, and Rote Hilfe participated. We highlighted the current situation in all four parts of Kurdistan, particularly in connection with the current peace process led by Abdullah Öcalan. In addition to us, Young Struggle and Rote Hilfe participated in the panel. Young Struggle placed the anti-imperialist perspective of youth at the center, while Rote Hilfe addressed the increasing repression against solidarity activists with Kurdistan and Palestine.We also participated in the Ivana Festival with an info stand and a speech contribution.

At the end of June, we met with comrades from the MLPD party and discussed the situation in Syria/Rojava and developed ideas for coordinated action in favor of the Rojava Revolution. At the beginning of July, we finally spoke with the team of the left-wing Bundestag member Ferat Koçak. We planned concrete steps to make the merits of the Rojava Revolution more visible and, in that sense, also future cooperation. We also met with Zozan Gül from the Duisburg district association of the Left Party and with the university organization “die Linke Liste” (The Left List) from Cologne.

At the end of June and beginning of July, we held three lectures in Italy. We organized various educational events that highlighted the emergence of the Rojava Revolution and the situation in the Middle East. In Rome, we held a discussion with comrades from Jineolojî and also analyzed the current situation as well as the perspective of the communist organizations on the ground.

On July 21, the massacre in Pirsûs (tr. Suruç) marked its 10th anniversary. It was an attack on a delegation of hundreds of activists and revolutionaries who mobilized donations and helpers in Turkey and North Kurdistan to rebuild the destroyed city of Kobanê after its liberation. The attack killed 33 people. We participated in events and demonstrations in various cities. In Cologne, the police arbitrarily attacked the demonstration and injured several participants.

From August 26 to 31, the Rheinmetall Disarmament Camp took place in Cologne. Left-wing structures, democrats, and anti-war activists came together for a week to discuss the state of the anti-war movement and strengthen it. We participated in the discussions and were able to listen to many exciting educational sessions, for example from the Swiss Resistance Network on revolutionary perspectives for Rojava. Various actions were carried out against war institutions. The camp was to conclude on August 31 with a demonstration in the city center. After about one kilometer, the police violently attacked the demonstration and eventually kettled the participants for over 10 hours. There were injuries in the double-digit range. Nevertheless, the camp was an important highlight where various movements exchanged ideas and discussed Germany’s complicity in wars worldwide.

In September, the mission of the Global Sumud Flotilla was launched. While in recent years individual boats had always sailed to Gaza, this campaign set itself the goalReview of the Year 2025

of setting out to break the blockade of the Gaza Strip with 50 boats. This initiative was the response to the inaction of states in the face of the genocide, but also a coming together of thousands of internationalists for the Palestinian people. As internationalists and an organization that always promotes the united struggle of the Kurdish and Palestinian peoples, we decided to sail with the Global Sumud Flotilla as well. We also wanted to show that Israel, together with the USA, has been actively working since October 7 to reshape the Middle East in its own interests, thereby accepting the lives of thousands of civilians. Thus, we launched the campaign: “From Kobanê to Gaza – Defeat the Occupation.”

On September 1, one of our representatives, Murat Okundu, traveled to Tunis to participate in the preparations and to set out from there on the journey to Gaza. Due to various complications, we could not participate in the fleet. Nevertheless, the time in Tunisia was a great enrichment for us. On site, we took part in various solidarity actions and were able to make many new contacts.

In Germany, we nevertheless continued our campaign. Thus, on September 12, a lecture was held in Berlin under the motto: “From Kobanê to Gaza – the Sumud Flotilla as a Bridge of Peoples.” We analyzed the situation in the Middle East and discussed the importance of the united struggle of the local peoples, especially that of the Palestinian and Kurdish peoples. In doing so, we classified how the Global Sumud Flotilla is to be regarded as the largest internationalist initiative of recent years. With our campaign materials, we were present in Berlin, other cities in Germany, but also at the “Fête de l’Humanité” festival in Paris and were able to have some interesting discussions.

Even though the crews of all ships were aware that the fleets could be attacked and abducted along with all members off the coast of Gaza, hundreds of boats sailed confidently toward Palestine. On October 1, the ships of the Global Sumud Flotilla were hijacked off Gaza by the Israeli army and all members arrested. Protest waves broke out across Germany and Europe. In Italy, the country was paralyzed for one day by a solidarity general strike. This showed that a movement was born that stands in a dialectical relationship to each other in direct action on the boat and with demonstrations, strikes, and occupations on land. Thus, from October 4 onward, we organized a hunger strike in Berlin together with Young Struggle, Zora, the Platform of the Voice of Political Prisoners (TSP), Pride Rebellion, and Palästina Spricht. The alliance demanded the release of all detained activists, an end to the unlawful blockade of Gaza under international law, the cessation of all German arms deliveries to Israel, and an immediate end to the genocide in Gaza.

During this time, we organized vigils, leaflet actions, and discussion rounds. Rallies were also held in front of the Foreign Office to point out the German government’s responsibility for the return of the detained individuals, as well as for the genocide in Gaza. On October 8, the ships of the Freedom Flotilla Coalition and the Conscience were hijacked. The hunger strike was continued for the prisoners of this fleet as well and finally ended on October 13.

From September 25 to October 1, the annual Kurdish Film Festival took place in Berlin. At the invitation of the film producer, we participated in the screening of the documentary “Vartinis.” Afterward, the survivors of the Vartinis massacre reported on the repression by the Turkish army in the 1990s.

In mid-October, we were invited by an alliance of the revolutionary introductory weeks at TU Berlin to give a lecture. We reviewed the recent events in Syria and discussed Rojava as a perspective for a democratic and plural Syria.

On November 8, we participated in Cologne in the central demonstration for the freedom of Abdullah Öcalan, who has been imprisoned since 1999.

In mid-December, we participated in Gelsenkirchen in the brigadists’ meeting for the construction of a hospital and the sending of medical personnel to Gaza. At the meeting, a common will was created to organize direct aid for Gaza together and to put international solidarity into concrete practice. Experiences were also shared from the construction campaign of the maternity clinic in Kobanê, which was built in 2016 by an international delegation.

This is an initiative of the ICOR (International Coordination of Revolutionary Parties and Organizations), which we very much welcome. The next day, at a meeting, the nationwide Palestine solidarity organization “Gaza must Live” was founded. We participated with contributions to the discussion to highlight the importance of the united struggle against the wars in the Middle East.

This year was marked by many successes for us, but it has also shown that wars worldwide and the situation in Syria are escalating. Currently, we are in a transitional phase in which a new Syria is being built and it will be decided whether it will be a democratic or Islamist, federal or centralized Syria. Thus, the status of Rojava will also be clarified during this time. In light of the negotiations, we must strengthen the position of the revolution from Europe. In the coming year, one of our main tasks is to support the resistant forces and peoples of Syria. The Druze, Alawites, and Northeast Syria must stand together against the attacks by the HTS government.

Furthermore, in 2026, in light of global escalations, we want to promote solidarity with all the oppressed and strengthen international solidarity.