SUBSCRIBE TO OUR FREE NEWSLETTER
Daily news & progressive opinion—funded by the people, not the corporations—delivered straight to your inbox.
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
President Donald Trump speaks during a campaign rally at the American Airlines Center on October 17, 2019 in Dallas, Texas. (Photo: Tom Pennington/Getty Images)
'Absolutely No Respect for Human Life': Trump Compares Turkish Assault on Kurds to Two Kids Fighting in a Parking Lot
"The president is talking about genocidal slaughter and hundreds of thousands of war victims like it's a playground squabble."
Oct 18, 2019
During a campaign rally in Dallas, Texas Thursday night, President Donald Trump compared the Turkish assault on Kurds in Syria that he enabled--which has killed dozens and displaced an estimated 160,000 civilians--to two kids fighting in a parking lot.
"Sometimes you have to let 'em fight," Trump said to cheers from his supporters. "Like two kids in a lot, you gotta let 'em fight, then you pull 'em apart."
Trump's callous and mocking remarks about an attack in which people were maimed, tortured, and executed left observers appalled.
"This little quip speaks volumes," tweeted S.V. Date, White House correspondent for HuffPost. "The president is talking about genocidal slaughter and hundreds of thousands of war victims like it's a playground squabble."
The comments, wrote another critic, show the president "has absolutely no respect for human life."
Watch:
\u201cWATCH: President Trump on Turkey attacking the Kurds: "Sometimes you have to let them fight, like two kids in a lot. You have to let them fight, and then you pull them apart!"\u201d— MSNBC (@MSNBC) 1571365020
"This is outright horrifying," tweeted Daniel Nichanian, fellow at the Justice Collaborative. "The Kurds have suffered decades of systematic state-sponsored violence and repression (physical, cultural, political)."
The president's comments came just hours after U.S. Vice President Mike Pence and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo announced what they called a "ceasefire" agreement with Turkey that would require Kurds with the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) to leave a 20-mile area near the border of Turkey.
The deal, which critics condemned as "ethnic cleansing," was celebrated by Turkey as a near-total victory.
"Turkey isn't even calling it a ceasefire--it's calling it a win," notedVox's Jen Kirby. "It is not clear the Syrian Kurds were consulted at all about this arrangement, and the extent to which they'll comply remains unclear."
Speaking to reporters Thursday, Trump openly used the language of ethnic cleansing to describe the U.S. agreement with Turkey:
\u201cReferring to Kurds living along Turkish border in Syria, Trump says of Turkey, "they had to have it cleaned out."\u201d— Aaron Rupar (@Aaron Rupar) 1571336619
"Donald Trump is defending the notion that a historically oppressed ethnic minority had to be 'cleaned out,'" tweetedThe Nation's John Nichols. "Anyone who defends this language is either wholly ignorant of the past or wholly evil."
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) said in response to Trump's comments: "The president of the United States is using the language of ethnic cleansing. If we allow him to continue, who would he use it on next?"
Join Us: News for people demanding a better world
Common Dreams is powered by optimists who believe in the power of informed and engaged citizens to ignite and enact change to make the world a better place. We're hundreds of thousands strong, but every single supporter makes the difference. Your contribution supports this bold media model—free, independent, and dedicated to reporting the facts every day. Stand with us in the fight for economic equality, social justice, human rights, and a more sustainable future. As a people-powered nonprofit news outlet, we cover the issues the corporate media never will. |
Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
During a campaign rally in Dallas, Texas Thursday night, President Donald Trump compared the Turkish assault on Kurds in Syria that he enabled--which has killed dozens and displaced an estimated 160,000 civilians--to two kids fighting in a parking lot.
"Sometimes you have to let 'em fight," Trump said to cheers from his supporters. "Like two kids in a lot, you gotta let 'em fight, then you pull 'em apart."
Trump's callous and mocking remarks about an attack in which people were maimed, tortured, and executed left observers appalled.
"This little quip speaks volumes," tweeted S.V. Date, White House correspondent for HuffPost. "The president is talking about genocidal slaughter and hundreds of thousands of war victims like it's a playground squabble."
The comments, wrote another critic, show the president "has absolutely no respect for human life."
Watch:
\u201cWATCH: President Trump on Turkey attacking the Kurds: "Sometimes you have to let them fight, like two kids in a lot. You have to let them fight, and then you pull them apart!"\u201d— MSNBC (@MSNBC) 1571365020
"This is outright horrifying," tweeted Daniel Nichanian, fellow at the Justice Collaborative. "The Kurds have suffered decades of systematic state-sponsored violence and repression (physical, cultural, political)."
The president's comments came just hours after U.S. Vice President Mike Pence and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo announced what they called a "ceasefire" agreement with Turkey that would require Kurds with the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) to leave a 20-mile area near the border of Turkey.
The deal, which critics condemned as "ethnic cleansing," was celebrated by Turkey as a near-total victory.
"Turkey isn't even calling it a ceasefire--it's calling it a win," notedVox's Jen Kirby. "It is not clear the Syrian Kurds were consulted at all about this arrangement, and the extent to which they'll comply remains unclear."
Speaking to reporters Thursday, Trump openly used the language of ethnic cleansing to describe the U.S. agreement with Turkey:
\u201cReferring to Kurds living along Turkish border in Syria, Trump says of Turkey, "they had to have it cleaned out."\u201d— Aaron Rupar (@Aaron Rupar) 1571336619
"Donald Trump is defending the notion that a historically oppressed ethnic minority had to be 'cleaned out,'" tweetedThe Nation's John Nichols. "Anyone who defends this language is either wholly ignorant of the past or wholly evil."
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) said in response to Trump's comments: "The president of the United States is using the language of ethnic cleansing. If we allow him to continue, who would he use it on next?"
During a campaign rally in Dallas, Texas Thursday night, President Donald Trump compared the Turkish assault on Kurds in Syria that he enabled--which has killed dozens and displaced an estimated 160,000 civilians--to two kids fighting in a parking lot.
"Sometimes you have to let 'em fight," Trump said to cheers from his supporters. "Like two kids in a lot, you gotta let 'em fight, then you pull 'em apart."
Trump's callous and mocking remarks about an attack in which people were maimed, tortured, and executed left observers appalled.
"This little quip speaks volumes," tweeted S.V. Date, White House correspondent for HuffPost. "The president is talking about genocidal slaughter and hundreds of thousands of war victims like it's a playground squabble."
The comments, wrote another critic, show the president "has absolutely no respect for human life."
Watch:
\u201cWATCH: President Trump on Turkey attacking the Kurds: "Sometimes you have to let them fight, like two kids in a lot. You have to let them fight, and then you pull them apart!"\u201d— MSNBC (@MSNBC) 1571365020
"This is outright horrifying," tweeted Daniel Nichanian, fellow at the Justice Collaborative. "The Kurds have suffered decades of systematic state-sponsored violence and repression (physical, cultural, political)."
The president's comments came just hours after U.S. Vice President Mike Pence and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo announced what they called a "ceasefire" agreement with Turkey that would require Kurds with the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) to leave a 20-mile area near the border of Turkey.
The deal, which critics condemned as "ethnic cleansing," was celebrated by Turkey as a near-total victory.
"Turkey isn't even calling it a ceasefire--it's calling it a win," notedVox's Jen Kirby. "It is not clear the Syrian Kurds were consulted at all about this arrangement, and the extent to which they'll comply remains unclear."
Speaking to reporters Thursday, Trump openly used the language of ethnic cleansing to describe the U.S. agreement with Turkey:
\u201cReferring to Kurds living along Turkish border in Syria, Trump says of Turkey, "they had to have it cleaned out."\u201d— Aaron Rupar (@Aaron Rupar) 1571336619
"Donald Trump is defending the notion that a historically oppressed ethnic minority had to be 'cleaned out,'" tweetedThe Nation's John Nichols. "Anyone who defends this language is either wholly ignorant of the past or wholly evil."
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) said in response to Trump's comments: "The president of the United States is using the language of ethnic cleansing. If we allow him to continue, who would he use it on next?"
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.