Hvorfor kæmper Tyrkiet mod kurderne? Warum kämpft die Türkei gegen die Kurden? Why is Turkey fighting the Kurds? Türkiye neden Kürtlerle savaşıyor? 土耳其為何要與庫德人作戰？

Da Tyrkiets fodboldlandshold fejrede sejren over Albanien, så det sådan ud. As Turkey's national football team celebrated their victory over Albania, it looked like this.

Mange af dem gjorde honnør. Et sjældent syn i fodboldverdenen. Many of them saluted. A rare sight in the world of football.

Det blev gentaget på Twitter efter kampen, nu af hele holdet. It was repeated on Twitter after the game, this time by the whole team.

Der står, at holdet dedikerede sejren til "vores modige soldater og martyrer". It says the team dedicated the victory to "our brave soldiers and martyrs".

Her er de tyrkiske soldater, der to dage inden indledte en offensiv - Here are the Turkish soldiers who launched an offensive two days earlier

- mod de kurdiske styrker i det nordøstlige Syrien.

Men begyndelsen på den her historie går over 100 år tilbage. But the beginning of this story goes back over 100 years.

Militæroffensiven bunder i en strid med rødder i 1. verdenskrig. The military offensive is rooted in a dispute dating back to World War I.

Her mellem Mosul og Van-søen levede kurderne. Here, between Mosul and Lake Van, the Kurds lived.

Området var en lille del af det store tyrkiske Osmanniske Rige. The area was a small part of the large Turkish Ottoman Empire.

Under 1. verdenskrig var riget en del af centralmagterne. During World War I, the kingdom was part of the Central Powers.

Men de tabte krigen, og med Sèvres-fredstraktaten fra 1920 - But they lost the war, and with the Sèvres Peace Treaty of 1920

- blev Det Osmanniske Rige skåret i stykker. Armenien fik uafhængighed. - the Ottoman Empire was dismembered. Armenia gained independence.

Frankrig, Storbritannien, Italien og Grækenland fik hver en bid. France, the UK, Italy and Greece each got a bite.

I traktaten var der et løfte om en autonom kurdisk stat. The treaty promised an autonomous Kurdish state.

Men den nye nationalistiske regering under Mustafa Kemal, senere Atatürk - But the new nationalist government under Mustafa Kemal, later Atatürk

- nægtede at acceptere Sèvres-traktaten og de nye grænser. - refused to accept the Treaty of Sèvres and the new borders.

Den tyrkiske uafhængighedskrig brød ud og fik fatale konsekvenser - The Turkish War of Independence broke out and had fatal consequences...

- for kurdernes drøm om en selvstændig stat. - for the Kurds' dream of an independent state.

Efter den tyrkiske sejr blev Sèvres-traktaten skrottet - After the Turkish victory, the Treaty of Sèvres was scrapped

- og erstattet af Lausanne-fredstraktaten i juli 1923. - and replaced by the Lausanne Peace Treaty in July 1923.

Den sikrede den nye tyrkiske stat suverænitet over det anatolske område. It gave the new Turkish state sovereignty over the Anatolian region.

Planerne om en uafhængig kurdisk stat var væk. The plans for an independent Kurdish state were gone.

Tyrkiet begyndte at nedbryde minoriteternes kultur, bl.a. kurdernes. Turkey began to break down the culture of minorities, including the Kurds.

Det blev forbudt at bære fez eller turban. It was forbidden to wear fez or turban.

Undertrykkelsen skulle assimilere kurderne, altså gøre dem til tyrkere. The oppression was meant to assimilate the Kurds, turning them into Turks.

Det var en brutal nationdannelse, der førte til blodige opgør og mange dræbte. It was a brutal nation-building process that led to bloody confrontations and many deaths.

Efter Atatürks død i 1938 og det første frie valg i 1950 skete et regimeskift. After Atatürk's death in 1938 and the first free elections in 1950, a regime change took place.

Det gav flere konfrontationer og borgerkrigslignende tilstande i 70'erne. This led to more confrontations and civil war-like conditions in the 1970s.

I 1978 blev Kurdistans Arbejderparti, PKK, etableret. In 1978, the Kurdistan Workers' Party, PKK, was established.

Partiet brugte vold både mod kurdere og tyrkere. The party used violence against both Kurds and Turks.

Langtfra alle kurdere følte sig repræsenteret af partiet. Far from all Kurds felt represented by the party.

I løbet af 1980'erne eskalerede kampene mellem den tyrkiske stat og PKK - During the 1980s, fighting between the Turkish state and the PKK escalated

- som siden har kæmpet for kurdisk selvstyre. - who have since fought for Kurdish autonomy.

PKK angreb tyrkiske mål og dræbte især tyrkiske læger, lærere - The PKK attacked Turkish targets, killing mainly Turkish doctors, teachers

- socialarbejdere og akademikere ansat i staten. - social workers and academics employed by the state.

Modsvaret fra Tyrkiet var hårdt. The response from Turkey was harsh.

Det anslås, at over 45.000 har mistet livet - It is estimated that over 45,000 have lost their lives

- alene i konflikten mellem PKK og den tyrkiske stat. - alone in the conflict between the PKK and the Turkish state.

Siden 2002 har PKK været på EU's liste over terrororganisationer. Since 2002, the PKK has been on the EU list of terrorist organizations.

Terrorbetegnelsen har kompliceret krigen i Syrien - The terror designation has complicated the war in Syria

- hvor den kurdiske milits YPG har spillet en stor rolle. - in which the Kurdish militia YPG has played a major role.

I 2011, hvor borgerkrigen og oprøret mod præsident Assad tog fart - In 2011, as the civil war and rebellion against President Assad gained momentum

- blev YPG en del af krigen og kom til at stå stærkt i det nordlige Syrien. - the YPG became part of the war and became strong in northern Syria.

Da Assad trak styrkerne ud for at forsvare storbyerne - When Assad withdrew his forces to defend the cities

- sikrede YPG og det kurdiske parti PYD udvidet kurdisk selvstyre i 2012. - YPG and the Kurdish party PYD secured extended Kurdish autonomy in 2012.

Det blev til Rojava, der i 2014 så sådan her ud. It became Rojava, which in 2014 looked like this.

Men terrororganisationen Islamisk Stat erobrede et stort område i Syrien - But the Islamic State terrorist organization captured a large area in Syria

- og kæmpede hårdt mod YPG. - and fought hard against the YPG.

IS blev en fælles fjende for YPG og mange lande i Vesten. ISIS became a common enemy for the YPG and many countries in the West.

Derfor allierede USA og resten af koalitionen sig med YPG i efteråret 2014. That's why the US and the rest of the coalition allied with the YPG in the fall of 2014.

Der var bare ét stort problem. There was just one big problem.

YPG har tætte bånd til PKK, der jo er på EU's terrorliste. The YPG has close ties to the PKK, which is on the EU terror list.

Det var koalitionen dog villig til at ignorere i kampen mod IS. However, the coalition was willing to ignore this in the fight against ISIS.

Da IS blev slået tilbage, voksede Tyrkiets bekymringer - As ISIS was defeated, Turkey's concerns grew

- over et eventuelt kurdisk selvstyre lige på den anden side af grænsen. - over a possible Kurdish autonomy just across the border.

Formålet med militæroffensiven i oktober 2019 er - The purpose of the October 2019 military offensive is to

- at knække den kurdiske milits og forhindre kurdiske planer for området. - to break the Kurdish militia and prevent Kurdish plans for the area.

Sådan endte det tyrkiske fodboldlandshold med at gøre honnør. This is how the Turkish national football team ended up saluting.

Kurderne er en af verdens største befolkningsgrupper uden et land. The Kurds are one of the world's largest populations without a country.

Tyrkiet kæmper for, at det forbliver sådan. Turkey is fighting to keep it that way.

For med et stort kurdisk mindretal i Tyrkiet på omkring 13 mio. - Because with a large Kurdish minority in Turkey of around 13 million.

- og flere lige uden for grænserne frygter tyrkerne - - and more people just outside the borders fear the Turks

- at kurdernes selvstændighedsdrøm bliver en realitet. - that the Kurds' dream of independence becomes a reality.

I tyrkernes øjne vil det være en trussel for nationen. In the eyes of the Turks, it will be a threat to the nation.

Nogle kurdere er glade for at leve som borgere i eksempelvis Tyrkiet - Some Kurds are happy to live as citizens in Turkey, for example.

- mens andre stadig kæmper for, at kurderne en dag får deres eget land. - while others are still fighting for the Kurds to one day have their own country.