Revolutionary Union for Internationalist Solidarity
Anarchist military unit
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The Revolutionary Union for Internationalist Solidarity (Greek: Επαναστατικός Σύνδεσμος Διεθνιστικής Αλληλεγγύης, abbreviated as ΕΣΔΑ or RUIS) is a Greek anarchist military unit involved in the Syrian Civil War. It was founded in 2015 and joined the International Freedom Battalion (IFB).
Rojava| Revolutionary Union for Internationalist Solidarity | |
|---|---|
| Επαναστατικός Σύνδεσμος Διεθνιστικής Αλληλεγγύης | |
Emblem of the RUIS | |
| Dates active | April 2015 – present |
| Active regions | Rojava |
| Ideology | Anarchism Anarcho-communism |
| Political position | Far-left |
| Status | Active |
| Part of |  International Freedom Battalion |
| Wars | Rojava conflict of the Syrian Civil War |
| Website | |
Establishment
Following the outbreak of the Syrian Civil War, in 2012, the autonomous region of Rojava was established in northern Syria, where the Kurdish-led People's Protection Units (YPG) fought against the Syrian Arab Republic and the Islamic State.[1] Many Greek anarchists volunteered to fight for the YPG, seeking to gain experience in guerrilla warfare and apply their tactics back in Greece.[2] In 2015, Greek anarchists and anarcho-communists established the Revolutionary Union for Internationalist Solidarity (RUIS), as a specifically anarchist military unit.[3]
It joined the International Freedom Battalion (IFB), an organisation of left-wing foreign volunteers established in June 2015, which fights alongside the YPG.[4] The RUIS was a later addition to the IFB, which was initially predominated by Turkish Marxist-Leninist organisations.[5] In May 2017, the RUIS made a statement declaring it would spill blood "from Rojava to Athens",[6] which caught the attention of the Greek authorities.[1]
Death of Haukur Hilmarsson
In early 2018, one of its fighters, the Icelandic anarchist Haukur Hilmarsson, was killed by the Turkish Armed Forces during the Turkish invasion of Afrin.[7] In its announcement of his death, the RUIS declared that he had "become immortal" and that his example had inspired them to continue their "resistance against fascism and tyranny".[8] In response, the RUIS called for attacks against assets of the Turkish state in Greece. The following year, far-left groups affiliated with the RUIS attacked the Turkish consulate in Thessaloniki and set fire to a Turkish diplomatic vehicle.[9]