Bay Area Kurds rally in solidarity of their homeland in the midst of humanitarian crisis

SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) -- The Bay Area's Kurdish community rallied this weekend in protest of the Turkish aggression and the withdrawal of U.S. troops from Northern Syria.

Kurds living in the Bay Area made their presence known in Union Square on Sunday.

"We're all Kurdish at heart, solidarity lives among us," said one speaker.

These people and their supporters are outraged.

Activist Deellan Khanaka and others are protesting President Trump's decision to pull back American troops from Northern Syria and Turkey's brutal assault on U.S. backed Kurdish Troops and civilians.

"We are watching genocide unfold before our eyes and nothing is happening. Air strikes are targeting civilians and hospitals with no justification for that at all," said Khanaka from the California Kurdish Community Center.

The same pro-kurdish group staged another protest at SFO on Saturday, next to the Turkish Airlines ticket counter.

Bay Area anthropologist Andrej Grubacic visited the Northern Syrian territory of Rojava this summer.

"I have seen people killed by Isis, so a victory over Isis is nonsense, Isis hasn't been defeated," said Grubacic.

The group is calling for U.S. sanctions against Turkey and a military no fly zone over Northern Syria.