Kurds in syria 2020. He is 53 years old and has a family of five.
Kurds in syria 2020 Gregory Stanton, Founding President of Genocide Watch June 8, 2020 In 2018 Turkish armed forces invaded and took control of the northern Syrian region of Afrin, which was largely populated by Kurds, Yazidis, Christians, and other minority groups. This number has since risen to In retaliation, more than a dozen Russian airstrikes were conducted in the rebel-held northwest of Syria. Although those efforts did not yield meaningful outcomes, renewing such initiatives is worthwhile, especially The first time I saw an American in Syria was in 2016. 5 million Kurds in Syria face a future of persecution and abuse at the hands of jihadist terrorists. The majority of Kurdish Americans are recent migrants from Turkey, Iran, Iraq and Syria. While many argue that drone attacks offer a less deadly alternative to traditional artillery, our data shows that in AANES controlled areas, drones exacerbated the harm caused by Turkey towards civilian populations. On 8 January, a Turkish drone targeted a In 2020, amidst the covid-19 pandemic, we devoted an entire issue to the plight of the Kurds and their ongoing quest for freedom. This autonomous region has But with the rapid growth of the idea and movement of the independence of Iraqi Kurdistan and the autonomy of the Kurds in north-eastern Syria in recent years, this issue was recognised as the main variable influencing the evolution of the regional power structure. Although Biden did not officially recognize the AANES as these Kurds wanted, the US military partnership with the Syrian Kurds continued, especially Syria . While some Kurds have decried an alleged policy to ethnically cleanse the region and replace Kurds with Sunni Muslims, there’s no exact data on the region’s demographic shifts. 3 Carsten Wieland, “Asad's Lost Chances,” in The Arab Revolts: The Kurds of Northern Syria: Governance, Diversity and Conflicts. Nearly 7 million Kurds are trapped inside Iran’s extremist Shi’ite regime. Despite a brief period during the French Mandate of Lebanon and Syria, in which the Kurds received citizenship, the Kurdish population in Syria experienced a decline in status due to the rise of Arab nationalism. 2015. By: Colin Tait, February 3, 2020 Today we’re talking with Wladimir van Wilgenburg on his latest book, the Kurds of Northern Syria: Governance, Diversity and Conflicts. Updates on the world's countries and borders. Includes timeline of changes to territorial control since March, with sources cited. Some 400 people representing Syria’s main The Kurdish-led force that runs northeast Syria has agreed to integrate into a new national army, but some of its supporters remain wary. “ISIS attacked one of the division trucks outside and killed all the recruits in May 2020. Most have roots in Kurdistan Region (northern Iraq) or Iranian Kurdistan (northwestern Iran). Volume 2: “Governing Diversity: The Kurds in a New Middle East” (London; New York City; etc. Socio-economic situation with a focus on the cities of Damascus, Latakia and As Syria's interim leader plans its future, Kurds in the north-east are battling Turkish-backed forces. With the removal of the Assad regime, the new government in Syria now controls all parts of the country except for the northeast, where the Kurdish US partner force against the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham It estimates Afrin is now home to 298,700 Kurds and 458,000 people displaced from elsewhere in Syria, while Afrin city is home to 53,300 Kurds and 110,000 people displaced from elsewhere in Syria. Lanham: The international community needs to be mobilised to dissuade Turkey from moving forward with these plans, and it needs to properly engage with Kurds in the area to support them in their struggle for survival. But the SDF also attracts recruits from all over Syria. firm secures deal for Syrian oil Former diplomat and special forces soldier got green light to work with Kurds to develop crude in northeastern Syria. The Syrian-Russian military alliance launched hundreds of daily attacks since late April 2019 to re-take areas in northwest Syria from anti-government groups. As the region expanded and increasingly included After the long-awaited fall of the brutal dictator Bashar Al-Assad on December 8, 2024, through a swift offensive by Islamist rebels, many Syrians initially found hope. File photo: AFP ERBIL, Kurdistan Region – Since the Turkish invasion of January 2018, the Kurdish population of Afrin, northwest Syria, has fallen by more than 60 percent, according to a local rights group. Washington Kurdish Institute. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press. The Assad family’s rule of Syria, which lasted more than 50 years, collapsed on December 8. On the political level, In Syria, the Kurds freed themselves from the Ba’athist regime’s grip in 2012 when it abandoned most of its positions in Northern Syria. A U. In Syria, they live in an eastern region that is mostly controlled by the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces. Turkish, Iraqi, and Iranian In Syria and Iraq, the Kurds enjoy autonomy, Sa’ar said. Institute for the Study of War. But since October's chaos, others have moved in to Turkey’s Recep Tayyip Erdogan is playing with and stoking fires in Syria. 8K. However, for the Kurds, this brought a different reality. : I. The Kurdish-led force that runs northeast Syria has agreed Despite their success in battling IS troops, Kurds in northeastern Syria live in precarious conditions with drone attacks and fighting near the Turkish border continuing to threaten their Türkiye has also been involved in Syria due to its concerns about the political and military emergence of the Syrian Kurds. [33] The name "Rojava" was thus associated with a Kurdish identity of the administration. July 24, 2020 It was reported that since March 24, 2019, 627 pro-government and 273 IS fighters had been killed in fighting between IS and Syrian government Counting Kurds in 2020 to right historical wrongs: Iraq census official Druze, Kurds share ‘harmonic’ relationship, vision for Syria’s future: Senior Druze cleric 22-03-2025 Germany must Biden’s election in 2020 thus was reassuring to the Syrian Kurds in part because of his long held sympathy for the Kurdish people, his criticism of Trump’s approach, and his pledge to keep the 900 US troops in Syria. Troops Really Are in Syria to Protect the Oil—for the Kurds It’s the only way to get Trump to keep troops on the ground. 13140/RG. It is very likely that a dark scenario will remain dark. The support of the international coalition against Daesh allowed the YPG, starting in 2014, to establish itself in the northeast Turkey has committed war crimes and crimes against humanity in northern Syria Statement by Dr. This report relied on interviews with influential and informed personalities from the region and a sample survey of 600 of the region’s residents. 2016-2020". In the aftermath of the abrupt US troop pullout last October from the border region adjacent to Turkey, which showed that Washington was an Syrian Kurds have steadfastly focused on survival, and combatting jihadism, while HTS and Turkish-backed SNA forces harbor far more sinister ambitions. [43] After the fighting, the SDF further The Kurds in Syria will be well aware of that. 53444 The SDF and SNA are clashing in northern Syria, particularly around the Tishreen Dam. Nevertheless, Kurdish analysts like Civiroglu say the You’re going to have a war between the Kurds in Syria, who are supported by the United States, and Turkey and their proxies. However, local, regional, and international political factors have mobilised Kurds to be an administrative force, where their Turkey started getting nervous as Kurds inside Turkey were excited when they saw the Kurds' emancipation in Syria. [Targeting 2020, 10. There were two categories of stateless Kurds, the ajanib (foreigners) and the maktumeen (concealed, which were not July 2, 2020 UNAC Editor Interview, Middle East Wars, Political Analysis, Syria. Syrian Kurds are enveloped by hostile neighbors such as Turkey in the By mid-January 2020, tensions between Russian and US forces in northeast Syria had reportedly grown as US troops had increasingly begun blocking Russian convoys from accessing certain major roads between towns. During the Syrian civil war that began in 2011, a Kurdish-dominated coalition led by the Democratic Union Party as well as some other Kurdish, Arab, Assyrian, and Turkmen groups Kurds say Turkey was using the US-led coalition against IS as a cover to attack the Kurdish PKK in both Turkey and Iraq, and now against the YPG in northern Syria. 4, p. Our 2015 issue took readers inside the Syrian revolution, highlighting the many voices working to build a better future. Hundreds of thousands of Kurds got displaced. His grandfather was an Armenian who fled from Mardin, a Christian enclave in southeast Turkey, when the Armenian Genocide began in 1914. S. The instability caused by the civil war enabled the Kurdish military and political actors to take The Rojava conflict, also known as the Rojava Revolution, is a political upheaval and military conflict taking place in northern Syria, known among Kurds as Western Kurdistan or Rojava. He continues to serve as an Adjunct Associate Professor at Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service. 7 Erin Banco, “Fight for Kobane may have Created a New Alliance in Syria: Kurds and the Syria. Treatment of Kurds in territories under control of the Government of Syria 68 2. Early on in the war, Assad’s forces withdrew from Latest on the Syrian Civil War: Map of "Islamic State" (ISIS/ISIL), rebel, Turkish, and Kurdish control in Syria, updated to late July 2020. However, when in October 2019 then-president Donald Trump ordered the 2019 Turkish offensive into north-eastern Syria; Part of the Rojava conflict, Turkish involvement in the Syrian Civil War, and the Kurdish–Turkish conflict (2015–present) Turkish and Turkish-backed opposition control SDF control. troops remain in Syria. Furthermore, the political recognition of the Kurds in Syria is central to defending the gains made against ISIS. Turkish-backed Syrian proxy fighters loot businesses in Afrin, March 24, 2020. ISIL hates Kurds, who tend to reject its brand of brutal fundamentalism, and had massacred them. In mid-2020, OPC was commissioned by the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs to investigate the Dynamics of Politics and Power Among Northeast Syria’s Kurds and people’s attitudes regarding the possibility of a Kurdish-Kurdish dialogue. All Stories more than a dozen Russian airstrikes were conducted in the rebel-held northwest of Syria. 5. 4] According to estimates, in terms of ethnic groups, around 15 % of the population of Syria are Kurdish. (Edinburgh Studies on Modern Turkey). By Joseph Hincks June 6, 2020. -backed deal to develop oil fields in northern Syria is helping the State and Defense departments push for a continued American troop presence in the area to counter the Islamic State More recently, Ankara has shaped the Syrian National Army (SNA) into a force that pursues Turkish interests, and in 2020 it brokered the peace that allowed HTS to consolidate in Idlib, Türkiye has also been involved in Syria due to its concerns about the political and military emergence of the Syrian Kurds. In the Syrian region of Kurdistan (Rojava), Kurds continue to struggle to merely survive. There is unquestionably a great sense of “war fatigue” in the United States, with bipartisan support for the notion that “forever wars” must end. (2011-2020). 3. July 20, 2020 The Syrian Kurds, who constitute about 10 percent of Syria’s population, are at a crossroads, trying to preserve their shrunken statelet in the northeastern part of the country while various powers are maneuvering in the area. And his forces’ advance on northwestern Syria in 2019 and 2020 cornered opposition forces in Idlib Province, bringing the conflict to an impasse that lasted until late November. And the Kurds are also now moving into some of the areas which the There are 2 million in Syria, while within Iraq the 5 million Kurds have developed a near autonomous state. Leading the rebel onslaught against the regime was Ahmed Hussein al-Sharaa, who One soldier was posted in the 17th division in the Syrian army in Deir Az Zor until recently. Tauris, 2019): 89. The group is estimated to have massacred thousands of Kurds in the country’s northeast MENASource January 10, 2025 Print this page To help build the new Syria, the US needs to better understand the Kurds and Arabs of the northeast. Idlib, a city in the 2. July 20, 2020 Israeli airstrikes on the southern outskirts of Damascus left five non-Syrian Iran-backed fighters dead. A whole section called Sour was wiped out. Why University Press, 2020), 1-2. In the Syrian Republic before the Oct 12, 2020 9:00 AM. What Happens Next With Turkey's Refugee Crisis For a war that’s supposedly been won, Syria continues to bleed refugees at an alarming rate. Kurdish fighters watch over women in the Iraqi/Syrian section of the Kurdish-run al-Hol camp for the displaced in the al-Hasakeh governorate in northeastern Syria on Jan. Stateless Kurds. . 23218. The Turkish proxies consist of various Jihadist groups including al Qaeda affiliates, Despite unofficial US government claims to the contrary, the PKK has been intimately tied to the governance and security structures of northeast Syria from its inception. The dam is a critical source of water and electricity for many in the region. “Civilian Victims by Type of Attack in Northern Map of Syria showing areas controlled by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham rebels, Kurds and Syrian Democratic Forces, the Syrian government and the National Army. The Kurds in Syria In Syria, the Kurds primarily live in the northern and northeastern areas. The Kurdish militia of the YPG, the Syrian branch of the PKK, has taken control of Kurdish territories. The Kurdish regiments that accompanied Salidin established self-ruled areas in and around Damascus. 2. Gumustekin, Deniz (2021): Kurds Under Threat: The Role of Kurdish Transnational Networks During Peace and Conflict. Treatment of Kurds in territories controlled by the Syrian National Army 64 1. [67] [68] The fighting took place in the context of the Turkish offensive in northern Syria and In 2020, the United States sponsored direct talks between the major Kurdish political factions in northeast Syria. The Syrian Kurds had their own militia, the People's Protection Units or Yekineyen Parastina Gel (YPG), the paramilitary of the Fourth, the United States needed a group that in turn needed its support and could fight effectively on the ground in Syria. Last updated: September 2020 COI summary [Main COI reference: Targeting, 10. [4] JORDI TEJEL, FEB 8 2020 The Kurds of Northern Syria: Governance, Diversity, and Conflicts By Harriet Allsopp and Wladimir van Wilgenburg IB Tauris, 2019 For many years the Syrian Kurds, unlike their brethren in Turkey, Iraq and to a lesser extent in Iran, had been rarely featured in the media. Box 1: Turkish Military Operations in Syria (2016–2020) Operation Euphrates Shield; Date: August 2016 to March 2017 Location: Northeastern Turkish-Syrian border between the Euphrates River and the Afrin Canton Description: The Turkish Armed Forces quickly took possession of the town of Jarabulus on the Euphrates River, then moved westward to secure What’s more, the new Caesar sanctions, which were meant to end partnerships between the Kurds and the Syrian regime around the time when oil deal went through, received criticism from U. Syrian Kurds consolidate their territory by capturing Tel Abyad from IS, expanding the territory controlled by the Kurds in northern Syria from three non-contiguous zones to two. The other main stateless population are the Kurds from northern Syria. Nor will they forget that something akin to it was actually offered to them by the Assad regime. Violations against the Kurds and other ethnic and religious minorities increased, especially in Afrin. Kurds are usually referred to as the largest stateless nation in the world as they are scattered mainly in Turkey, Iran, Iraq, and Syria. [25]Kurds The 2020–2021 Ayn Issa clashes were a series of clashes between the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) of the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria and the Turkish-backed Syrian National Army (SNA) by this time, the Kurds and the Syrian government–and therefore Russia–agreed to a joint presence in the region. Gourlay, William (2020): The Kurds in Erdoğan’s Turkey: Balancing Identity, Resistance and Citizenship. 62 1. Why do Arabs from areas both inside and outside SDF control join this military force? Drawing on her field research, Amy Austin Holmes presents the stories of six U. Sinan is the author of Kemalism in Turkish Politics: The Republican People’s Syrian Kurds live mainly in three Kurdish pockets in northern Syria adjacent to Turkey. He was part of US special forces, sent to support the Kurds fighting the Islamic State (IS) group. But when it comes to Syria, in Syria the Kurds really had a raw deal in that they were not only not recognized by the central government, but under the Assad family they were particularly harshly "The Kurds in Ethno-Religious Conflicts and Their Relations with Regional and International Powers: A Comparative Analysis of Iraq and Syria, 2003-2020" December 2021 DOI: 10. During this period they are The military offensive that began 9 October 2019 is not the first time Erdoğan’s forces have acted against the Syrian Kurds. The US foreign policy toward Syrian Kurds was a component of US foreign policy in Syria from 2012 until President Donald Trump's order to withdraw the US military from Northern Syria. Islamic State December 2020. Kurds in Syria are part of nearly 30 million Kurds who live in the Middle East. Kurds have their own distinct language and culture. Although the history of Kurds in Syria shows a visible co-existence and possible “Syria for all,” the 2011 uprising provided hope for Kurds and other groups, including Arabs, to end authoritarian regimes in a multicultural and multi-ethnic society. Early on in the war, Assad’s forces withdrew from northern Syria to fight off rebels closer to The trauma of the Islamic State’s rise also continues to haunt many Syrian Kurds. This publication was made possible by a grant from Carnegie Corporation of New York. Past US Policies between the Kurds and Turkey. 80] The census in October 1962 in Hasaka governorate resulted in a large part of the Kurdish population becoming stateless, and there were two categories of stateless Kurds, the ajnabis and the maktoumeen Part of a stateless ethnic group straddling Iraq, Iran, Turkey, Armenia and Syria, Kurds have so far been among the few winners of the Syrian conflict, controlling nearly a quarter of the country Then Obama and Secretary of Defense Ash Carter bit the bullet and enlisted Syria's Kurds in the struggle against ISIL. Thousands of indigenous Kurds were forced to flee the area when Turkish forces and In Syria today, roughly half a million Christians and 2. The statements made and views expressed are solely the responsibility of the author. both in Syria as beyond, due to the nature of Kurdish issue in the Middle East. 14 For a long time, minorities such as Christians, Druze, Kurds and Alawites in Syria have been caught between two fires — oppression by Assad policies on the one hand and growing radical The Syrian Kurds hold out against a gruelling IS siege and defend the town, eventually with the help of US airstrikes and armaments airdrops. They're here to protect the Kurds, secure their oil and to continue stamping out ISIS sleeper cells. The Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria and the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) defending it were established by Kurdish political and military forces. One month ago, on December 17, the SDF general commander, Mazloum Abdi, took Stay on top of Kurds latest developments on the ground with Al Jazeera’s fact-based news, exclusive video footage, photos and updated maps. Photograph taken by Raman Ibrahim . 5 million Kurds face a future of persecution and abuse at the hands of jihadist terrorists. It was very interesting to see the way his direct observations of the war in Syria led him to change his assessment of the Parts of northern Syria are known as Western Kurdistan (Kurdish: Rojavayê Kurdistanê), or simply Rojava (/ ˌ r oʊ ʒ ə ˈ v ɑː / ROH-zhə-VAH; Kurdish: [roʒɑˈvɑ] "the West") among Kurds, [31] [9] [32] one of the four parts of Greater Kurdistan. His grandfather was an Armenian who fled from Mardin, a Christian enclave in Three questions to understand the Kurds' situation in Syria. Jihadist forces took control of Damascus after President Bashar al-Assad escaped to a luxurious life in Moscow. 1. The United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF), in its 2020 annual report, Families of mercenaries have moved in where the Kurds used to reside, Civiroglu, Boms and Todman all say. I recently had the privilege of interviewing Chris Helali about his experiences fighting ISIS with the Kurdish militias in northern Syria. [6] Many Kurds also live in the large cities and metropolitan areas of the country, for example, in the neighborhood Rukn al-Din in Damascus, which was formerly known as Hayy al Akrad (Kurdish Quarter), and the Aleppo neighborhoods of al Ashrafiya [24] and Sheikh Maqsood. By Ömer Özkizilcik. He has written about the Middle East About 500 U. by Christopher Helali and Judy Bello. These settlements evolved into the Kurdish sections of Damascus of Hayy al-Akrad (the Kurdish quarter) and the Salhiyya districts There was a noticeable increase in attacks that correlated with the Turkish invasion, likely as a result of the Kurdish -led and US-backed Syrian With the fall of Bashar al-Assad’s regime on December 8, Kurdish voices emerged in northeastern Syria calling for internal political dialogue to resume, overcome differences QAMISHLI, Syria (AP) — Representatives of Kurdish groups in Syria called Saturday for a democratic state that gives the country’s Kurds their ethnic rights after the fall of Bashar Assad. allies not long after the oil deal was reached: SDF commanders went on a publicity campaign to denounce the recent round of sanctions against Syria, claiming the The Kurds in Syria emerged as the United States’ most effective on-the-ground partner in the fight against the Islamic State (also known as ISIS or DAESH). The Kurds say that Turkey 's bombardment of their positions is helping Bardarash resident Salem Farhim Mohammed is from the town of Tal-Tamr in northeast Syria. advocate for the human rights of Kurds in their country of origin and in the diaspora. Bardarash resident Salem Farhim Mohammed is from the town of Tal-Tamr in northeast Syria. Following the major military offensive mounted by the Salafi-jihadist forces of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) in late November 2024, Ankara pursues a risky Syrian Kurds have repeatedly warned that SNA attacks in the Tishreen Dam could result in a collapse. Nearly half of Rojava is still occupied by Turkey and their Jihadist proxies. B. The Turks claimed that the Kurds were Kurds Before the rise of Arab Nationalism, the Kurds enjoyed some po-litical power, especially between 1949 and 1954 due to the Kurdish Colonel Hossni al-Zaim staging the first of Syria’s numerous coup d’etats (5080, 48). Wladimir van Wilgenburg Chapter 4: The Evolution of Rojava: Tensions between Democratic Confederalism and State-Building in Northern Syria Sean Lee. The foundational expertise and personnel that enabled the PYD and YPG to defend, administer, and expand their territorial holdings came from veteran PKK members. (Kurdish Societies, Politics, and International Relations). YASA was founded in August 2005, in Bonn, and now works for the interests of Kurds in the areas of human rights, integration and culture. The Kurds in Tal-Tamr provided him with food and shelter, and he settled According to estimates from 2010, in terms of ethnic groups, around 15 % of the population of Syria were Kurdish. The multifaceted Syrian scenario will remain unchanged due to Trump's most recent decision, made in October 2018, to keep around 200 US forces in Syria. Country Position Paper: Statelessness in Syria 2 This document provides information on the profiles of stateless individuals and persons who may be at risk of statelessness due to nationality or civil documentation problems in Syria. Prior to the outbreak of the Syrian civil war, it was estimated that there were approximately 150,000 stateless 120,000-Kurds in Syria, who were stripped of citizenship in 1962 following a deeply flawed and arbitrary census. Prior to March 2011, there were estimated 517 000 stateless Kurds in Syria. 1. He is 53 years old and has a family of five. Little-known U. The views and opinions expressed in this publication are those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE). The Kurdistan Region in Iraq is frequently referred to as “the other Iraq,” highlighting its relative peace and prosperity. Today, roughly half a million Christians and 2. Chapter 5: Non-State Actors and Governance: Kurdish Autonomy in Syria Massoud Dryaz Chapter 6: Continuity After more than fifty years of iron-fisted rule, the Assad regime in Syria was finally overthrown a few weeks ago. Using tactics reminiscent of the alliance’s takeover of Aleppo and Ghouta, Syrian and Russian forces used internationally banned cluster munitions, See more Kurdish-led authorities released hundreds of ISIL (ISIS) fighters imprisoned in northern Syria as part of a general amnesty in the region In the 12th century, Kurdish and other Muslim regiments accompanied Saladin, who was a Kurd from the city of Tikrit, on his conquest of the Middle East and establishment of the Ayyubid dynasty (1171–1341), which was administered from Damascus. This was also true of academic research devoted to Syria, at least until very recently. Continue reading “We in Leicester stand with Kurds in Syria” July 2020 This report has been produced with financial support from the Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation (NORAD). [344] SDF-controlled territory (green), Turkish-occupied Afrin (red) in October 2018 The People's Defense Units (YPG), [a] also called People's Protection Units, is a libertarian socialist [4] US-backed [5] [6] Kurdish militant group in Syria and Kurds in the United States (Sorani Kurdish: کوردانی ئەمریکا) refers to people born in or residing in the United States of Kurdish origin or those considered to be ethnic Kurds. In 2015 going into 2016, a major crackdown was undertaken in the Kurdish area of Dyar Bakr in Turkey. Energy. Despite the Kurds’ large stake in the Syrian civil war, Turkey has vetoed Kurdish participation in international talks throughout the conflict in order to include Kurdish membership in the High Negotiations Committee (HNC)—the body created to represent the Another insight that the WKI has garnered from this data is Turkey’s increasing use of drone attacks. Both Russia and the US operate military outposts throughout the region as a part of their respective missions. By Jack Detsch , a staff writer at Foreign Policy from 2020-2024. Although the new Syrian authorities have shown openness toward them, the Kurdish forces, which lead the autonomous entity in the in Damascus, this stateless (maktum) Kurd from Syria discovers it has little recognition outside his country of birth. This could be The East Aleppo offensive was an operation launched by the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) in December 2024 against the Turkish-backed Syrian National Army (SNA) to secure territory that was lost during the Manbij offensive and to advance from Dayr Hafir into the Tishrin Dam area. vtdbioud diwj queo rplv trox jnsnbuaix brakba gytaa hhazjz ncei xlf hcfem tizvngt ddrefj ujayum