1 00:00:00,050 --> 00:00:02,500 Almost three years after the battle for Kobane, 2 00:00:02,505 --> 00:00:07,000 a massive effort is underway to rebuild the Kurdish city that borders Turkey. 3 00:00:07,005 --> 00:00:12,600 In 2014 and 2015, nearly the entire city fell under Islamic State control. 4 00:00:12,605 --> 00:00:16,200 The majority Kurdish population suffered brutalities and massacres 5 00:00:16,205 --> 00:00:19,000 while much of the city was destroyed by ISIS terror attacks 6 00:00:19,005 --> 00:00:23,100 and the fierce resistance fighting by the YPG and YPJ. 7 00:00:23,100 --> 00:00:26,365 All but one neighborhood and one guard post on the outskirts of the city 8 00:00:26,370 --> 00:00:30,695 protected the local population and refugees that had fled to the Kurdish enclave 9 00:00:31,000 --> 00:00:33,600 for protection during the Syrian Civil War. 10 00:00:33,850 --> 00:00:38,960 Surrounded on three sides by the Islamic State, resistance forces had to contend with 11 00:00:38,965 --> 00:00:45,200 a relentless barrage of light and heavy weapons attacks, improvised artillery, and car bombs. 12 00:00:45,280 --> 00:00:48,280 Some of these attacks originated from Turkish soil, 13 00:00:48,285 --> 00:00:51,720 as was clearly demonstrated by many of the northern-most buildings 14 00:00:51,725 --> 00:00:55,990 showing a majority of their damage on their northern face. 15 00:00:56,100 --> 00:01:01,180 Past evidence of vehicle-borne explosives being deployed one block from the Turkish border crossing 16 00:01:01,200 --> 00:01:07,045 indicate collusion by the Turkish regime with the Islamic state in their common battle against the Kurds, 17 00:01:07,050 --> 00:01:12,240 whose homeland spans the borders of Syria, Turkey, Iraq, and Iran. 18 00:01:12,400 --> 00:01:16,520 Memorials for the fallen resistance fighters line the streets of Kobane. 19 00:01:16,600 --> 00:01:20,200 The sacrifices of the hundreds of Kurds serve as a stark reminder 20 00:01:20,205 --> 00:01:25,600 of the importance of the struggle for freedom that the city of Kobane now represents. 21 00:01:25,700 --> 00:01:31,650 Widespread rebuilding efforts are taking place to repair the collapsed roofs and walls damaged by the fighting. 22 00:01:32,000 --> 00:01:37,040 Large residential apartment buildings are being constructed to encourage the repopulation of the once thriving 23 00:01:37,045 --> 00:01:41,160 regional urban center. A special portion of the apartment buildings are being 24 00:01:41,165 --> 00:01:45,750 set aside for the families of those who gave their lives to defend the city. 25 00:01:45,900 --> 00:01:49,950 In addition, efforts are being made to preserve the historical antiquities of the region 26 00:01:49,955 --> 00:01:53,300 that the Islamic State made concerted efforts to destroy. 27 00:01:53,400 --> 00:02:01,600 Kurmanji is being taught alongside Arabic in schools that ISIS used not long ago for fundamentalist indoctrination. 28 00:02:02,000 --> 00:02:05,450 With the fall of Mosul, Raqqa, and Deir-ez-Zor cities, 29 00:02:05,500 --> 00:02:10,440 the Islamic State has been reduced to an ideology without a clear territorial base of operations. 30 00:02:10,445 --> 00:02:15,400 The pockets they still hold in Deir-ez-Zor province diminish day by day. 31 00:02:15,450 --> 00:02:19,560 Islamic State fighters from Syria, Iraq, and countries around the world 32 00:02:19,565 --> 00:02:22,920 offer tough resistance in the few towns they still hold. 33 00:02:22,950 --> 00:02:29,365 The most hardened are among them, and they show no signs of giving up the fight until the last have been killed or captured. 34 00:02:29,370 --> 00:02:33,155 The fighting is fierce and a continuous cycle of refugees flee the front line 35 00:02:33,160 --> 00:02:36,160 for the protection of the Syrian Democratic Forces. 36 00:02:36,200 --> 00:02:38,240 As the final battle pushes onward, 37 00:02:38,245 --> 00:02:43,095 towns can be seen quickly repopulating with the locals eager to pick up the pieces 38 00:02:44,000 --> 00:02:47,240 and put their lives back together after years of conflict. 39 00:02:47,600 --> 00:02:53,800 The cities of Raqqa and Tabqa are still being cleared of deadly booby traps left behind by ISIS. 40 00:02:54,000 --> 00:02:57,320 This is a painstakingly slow and difficult process of going house to house, 41 00:02:57,400 --> 00:03:00,720 discovering and dismantling the home- made explosives. 42 00:03:00,800 --> 00:03:05,550 The dangerous situation has led to the recent deaths of British internationalists 43 00:03:05,555 --> 00:03:10,800 Jac Holmes and Oliver Hall, who were helping to clear the IEDs. 44 00:03:11,000 --> 00:03:16,500 It will take more time before the cities are truly safe enough to begin rebuilding efforts. 45 00:03:17,330 --> 00:03:25,000 The city of Kobane and the outlying rural areas have had the opportunity to begin moving forward from a dark period in history. 46 00:03:25,300 --> 00:03:31,085 More recently liberated majority-Arab urban areas, such as the city of Manbij, 47 00:03:31,090 --> 00:03:34,880 have fully repopulated with expanding economic activity. 48 00:03:35,000 --> 00:03:39,885 The task of defending these areas has been handed over to local forces allied with the Kurds 49 00:03:39,900 --> 00:03:42,950 and are a part of the democratic federation. 50 00:03:43,000 --> 00:03:49,400 There are extremely difficult tasks ahead in rebuilding the essential infrastructure destroyed by the conflict. 51 00:03:49,500 --> 00:03:57,560 Political, social, and economic development have been modeled on the democratic confederalist system proposed by Abdullah Öcalan. 52 00:03:57,900 --> 00:04:04,500 The staying power of the federation may depend on its ability to provide essential services for the population. 53 00:04:04,750 --> 00:04:09,900 Raqqa and Tabqa military councils have been set up to develop autonomous and indigenous strength. 54 00:04:10,000 --> 00:04:15,200 The hope is that peace can soon take hold in the region so devastated by years of civil war. 55 00:04:15,400 --> 00:04:19,250 Supporters of the democratic confederalist project believe there is real potential 56 00:04:19,255 --> 00:04:25,900 that the multi-ethnic society of Northern Syria can become a model for a pluralistic future in the Middle East. 57 00:04:26,100 --> 00:04:29,885 We will continue to report from the Democratic Federation of Northern Syria 58 00:04:29,890 --> 00:04:33,200 with developments on this war-torn but hopeful region of the Middle East.