ISTANBUL
While preparing for a run near her home in Istanbul on Dec. 2, a Dutch researcher received two unexpected emails with a death threat and a warning.
"Hey, I have been following your Twitter page for a while ... You are officially set on a hit list. Be warned that we are following your steps everywhere and that we will find you, no matter if you are in Istanbul, Turkey or Amsterdam in Netherlands," said the email, accusing the researcher of being a "Muslim Brotherhood supporter."
"We will deliver something soon to your house door as proof of this," the email concluded.
Rena Netjes felt unsafe and did not want to leave her home after that message. For her, it was not hard to discern why she got it. The long-time researcher and journalist has been covering the Middle East for more than 25 years and is critical of the PKK/YPG terrorist group's activities in northern Syria.
After Netjes received a total of 12 such emails in a single month, as well as death threats from the PKK terror group through its social media accounts, she finally went public with the threats via Twitter on Sunday.
PKK/YPG's attacks on locals
Speaking to Anadolu Agency, Netjes, 56, said she has been conducting research on the PKK/YPG's presence in Syria, as well as its oppressive policies on those living in the area it occupies, kidnapping people and driving opponents out of their homes. In recent years, she published reports highlighting the terror group's pressure on people.
"I interviewed people who were expelled by the PKK and crossed the border from Syria into Türkiye. I asked them in Arabic why they fled. I thought they would say the reason is Russian forces or the Assad regime. But to my surprise, women were saying the YPG have taken their homes, which was a starting point for me."
These were lived experiences different from the stories Netjes heard in most Western media, prompting her to learn more about what was really happening in Syria. She visited the country's north four times in the last few years for in-depth information for her research.
The terror group and its supporters also vowed to target her social media accounts.
One of the emails she received from an email account called "RojavaKurd" account says: "We launched attacks against your Facebook, and we will target your Instagram and Twitter in the future."
"Your website will be shut down by DDoS (denial-of-service) attacks. We will never let (allow) Turkish propaganda by you against Rojava. You have been warned. Greetings from France!"
Another email, titled "You will be dead soon," was more specific:
"Did you know that your life is worth just $9,000? It is pretty easy to end your life, without us doing the dirty work. There are services on the Dark Web, and we could assign a hitman to kill you and end your miserable life."
All those threats are familiar to Netjes, who recently investigated the YPG/PKK's brutal activities in the region.
"I had written about it in the Atlantic Council two years ago, about several Kurds who were killed by the PKK/YPG. I met relatives and colleagues of them. But I did not expect that I would find myself receiving similar threats."
"So, I know it's not a joke. It can be real, and that's why I took it seriously and went public. The story is not about me. It's about the people inside Syria who are suffering. Let me then be the voice for those people who suffered and became victims of the PKK/YPG."
Threats of fake dating app profiles, LGBT-related sites
Netjes believes she is being targeted by the PKK/YPG due to her criticism of the terror group's activities as a "Western" researcher, in contrast to most of her Western colleagues, who ignore the PKK/YPG's attacks on local people.
"I am one of the few Westerners who know Arabic and regularly goes into opposition-controlled areas of Syria. The majority of Kurds are against the PKK/YPG, as they're suffering. Many young Kurds who fled don't want to be conscripted by the YPG to fight fellow Syrians. Kurds don't want to go back after leaving Syria due to the Daesh(/ISIS) threat, but also for the YPG. They don't go back. I have met many of them."
"The US military was looking for a group that they would use against Daesh. But they overlook the context, I think, and they overlook also what the group is doing, because the US, for example, is very much against the Assad regime. But, the PKK has very close connections with the Assad regime and they give them oil."
Netjes has been living in Türkiye since July 2018 and contacted the Dutch authorities and shared the messages with Turkish security forces following the death threats.
Other messages from accounts linked to the terror group say they created multiple fake profiles to use on dating apps and LGBT-related sites using a photo of her.
"Don't worry. Our network spans from France to Greece and Turkey. We will do whatever it takes to find you. We are coming for you!" the group said in another email.
Despite the threats, Netjes continues to study the region and will soon publish an article on the reasons why large numbers of people are leaving northeastern Syria.
The PKK and its Syrian branch, the YPG, have used terrorist bases across Türkiye's border in northern Iraq and northern Syria to plot and carry out attacks on Türkiye. The group has worked to create a terrorist corridor along the Syrian border, threatening both Syrian locals and nearby Turkish residents.
In its more than 35-year terror campaign against Türkiye, the PKK – listed as a terrorist organization by Türkiye, the US and the EU – has been responsible for the deaths of over 40,000 people, including women, children, and infants.
