page_title: Women's Protection Units
section_title: History
hierarchical_section_title: Women's Protection Units / History
caption_attribution_description: English: YPJ sniper at the Raqqa frontline in November 2016.
context_page_description: The Women's Protection Units or Women's Defense Units is an all-female militia involved in the Syrian civil war. The YPJ is part of the Syrian Democratic Forces, the armed forces of Rojava, and is closely affiliated with the male-led YPG. While the YPJ is mainly made up of Kurds, it also includes women from other ethnic groups in Northern Syria.
context_section_description: Women have been involved in Syrian Kurdish Resistance fighting since as early as 2011, when the mixed-sex YXG was founded, later to be renamed YPG in 2012. The YPJ was founded as a strictly women's organization on 3 April 2013 with the first battalion formed in Jindires and later expanded its activities towards the Kobane and Jazira cantons. All female fighters who were previously part of the YPG mixed units automatically became members of the YPJ. Initially, there was just one YPJ battalion in each of the three cantons of Rojava, but battalions were quickly established in every neighborhood, expanding the organization.
  As of late 2014, the YPJ had over 7,000 volunteer fighters between the ages of 18 and 40. By November 2016, the number of Arab and Kurdish YPJ fighters had reportedly risen to 20,000. As of August 2017, the group was reported to have 24,000 members.
  In the Syrian civil war, the YPJ and the YPG have fought against various groups in northern Syria, including the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) and was involved in the Siege of Kobanî beginning in March 2014, with various Kurdish media agencies reporting that "YPJ troops have become vital in the battle". In the Siege of Kobanî, prior to receiving the support of Western powers, the YPJ was forced to hold off ISIL attacks using only "vintage Russian Kalashnikovs bought on the black market, handmade grenades, and tanks they put together out of construction vehicles and pick-up trucks." It was not until October 2014 that the United States began coordinating air strikes with the YPJ-YPG fighters on the ground.
  Additionally, the YPG, YPJ and the PKK were involved in an August 2014 military operation at Mount Sinjar, where up to as many as 10,000 Yazidis were rescued from genocide at the hands of ISIL. ISIL had taken control of most areas around Mount Sinjar after pushing out the Peshmerga. Because ISIL views the Yazidis as "a community of devil worshipers," those formerly inhabiting the town of Sinjar were forced to flee into the mountains. This left many Yazidis, including children and the elderly, without food, shelter, or resources. Those still in the town were either massacred by ISIL or forced into sexual slavery.
  Along with the help of US air strikes, the attacking force was able to create a 30 kilometres (19 mi) safe zone for the Yazidi refugees to escape ISIL capture. The refugees were then moved into Northern Syria, with most later departing for safer areas of Iraqi Kurdistan.
  YPJ continues to fight alongside YPG as part of the multi-ethnic Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF). The YPJ was involved in battles such as the SDF offensive against the major IS strongholds in Tabqa and Raqqa, serving as the main proxy force (along with the YPG) for the United States. During Operation Olive Branch, the Turkish offensive against Afrin Canton, YPJ units were again heavily involved in the fighting. Guerrilla warfare tactics were among the tactics used against Turkey and their Syrian rebel allies.
  During the 2019 Turkish offensive into north-eastern Syria, Turkish-backed Free Syrian Army fighters trampled and mutilated the body of what appeared to be a YPJ fighter they killed in the countryside near Kobanî.
caption: YPJ sniper during the battle for Raqqa
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