Dozens of Winnipeg Kurds marched in solidarity with forces fighting against the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria.
Rally participants in Winnipeg waved signs calling ISIS a threat. Others praised the Peshmerga forces of the Kurdistan Regional Government in northern Iraq, which has been fighting against the Islamic State for months.
Organizers wanted to call attention to the plight of the Syrian town of Kobani, which ISIS and U.S.-backed coalition forces have fought over for weeks. The town, near the border with Turkey, has a mostly Kurdish population.
The rally started with a laying of a wreath at the monument to fallen soldiers on Memorial Boulevard then moved towards the Canadian Museum for Human Rights before ending at Scotiabank Stage.
In a news release, organizers issued a call on the United Nations to help bring in humanitarian assistance for the people in Kobani, who face a difficult winter with dwindling food and medical supplies.
Canada has sent CF-18 jet fighters and CP-140 Aurora surveillance planes, which are expected to join the U.S.-led coalition's bombing campaign against the Islamic State of Iraq within days.
- With a report by The Canadian Press
