ERBIL, Kurdistan Region of Iraq – Turkey’s far-right politician Devlet Bahceli on Tuesday called for the “cleansing” of Rojava (northeast Syria), under the pretext of the existence of “terrorist activities” as the area undergoes intense attacks by Damascus-affiliated forces.

Behceli, leader of the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP), in a speech at the parliament, condemned the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces’ (SDF) acting like “a state within a state” as “absolutely unsustainable.”

“East of the Euphrates, from Ayn al-Arab [Kobani] to Qamishli, where terrorist activities are active, must be eradicated, and the cleansing of the region must be implemented,” he asserted.

Behceli’s words come as a wide-scale military campaign is ongoing by Damascus-linked factions in areas of northern Syria held by the SDF, in a blatant violation of a ceasefire deal signed Sunday between Syrian interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa and SDF chief Mazloum Abdi.

The factions, notorious for massacres against the Druze and Alawites, are currently eyeing the symbolic Kurdish city of Kobani, with Rojava authorities warning that they aim to “exterminate Kurds.”

The politician’s words echo similar statements made by Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan a day prior, who accused the Kurdish authorities of attempting to form “a state within a state,” adding that he has told his Syrian counterpart that Ankara will continue to stand by Damascus in its fight against “terrorism.”

The MHP leader, harboring extremist nationalist principles, stressed that “the security of Damascus is the security of Ankara,” and accused the SDF of not responding to the disarmament call of the jailed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) leader Abdullah Ocalan.

Ocalan has previously clarified, in a meeting with the parliament delegation overseeing the peace process, that the call for disarmament does not extend to the Kurdish-led forces in Rojava, further asserting that Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa “will also turn into a dictator” if democratic transition does not take place in Syria, according to a pro-Kurdish lawmaker who attended the meeting.

Responding to the clashes, Murat Karayilan, a senior PKK commander, said Tuesday that the PKK “will protect Rojava no matter what,” asserting that “mobilization is for all Kurdistan … we must show the world that we are a nation.”

“The Turkish state authorities should know that we are not children,” Karayilan added, hinting at a potential outbreak of the peace process.

Elham Ahmad, foreign relations co-chair of the Democratic Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (DAANES), on Tuesday warned that the Syrian Arab Army and its factions’ attacks are aimed at “exterminating the Kurds.”

Civilians in Kobani and Qamishli have taken up arms and joined the Kurdish forces in the battle against Damascus-linked forces, and the SDF has called on all Kurdish youth in Iran, Kurdistan Region, and Turkey to “break the borders of the occupiers, and join the resistance.”

Behceli initiated the renewed peace process in October last year by urging Ocalan to address the Turkish parliament and call on his group to disarm. In July, dozens of PKK fighters burned their weapons in a symbolic disarmament ceremony in the Kurdistan Region’s Sulaimani province and earlier this month the group announced it will completely withdraw from Turkish soil.