DILUCAN BOZÎ

Kobanî – Kurdish people living in Turkey flocked to the Syrian border and when ISIS attacked Kobanî in 2014. And they declared a national mobilization to protect Kobanî. Young people not only from Kurdish cities in Turkey but also all over the world went to Kobanî and fought against ISIS to defend the lands of Kobanî. As many young people lost their lives in clashes, Kobanî was cleared from ISIS as a result of the resistance against it. The peoples won a great victory with great resistance in Kobanî. But lawsuits and arrests against Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) politicians, including Figen Yüksekdağ, Selahattin Demirtaş, Gültan Kışanak and Sebahat Tuncel have shocked everyone. Hîva Mihemed Elî, one of the women who witnessed the Kobanî resistance, spoke to Jinha Women’s News Agency about the ongoing Kobanî trial in Turkey.

“An unprecedented resistance took place in Kobanî”

Hîva Mihemed Elî recalled that ISIS began to attack Kobanî on September 15, 2014. “Daesh was defeated with great willpower. The stop of the advance of Daesh mercenaries in Kobanî actually caused great fear. Surely, those who fear are the people sending Daesh mercenaries to Kobanî,” she said.

“They want to revenge on politicians for the victory in Kobanî”

Hîva Mihemed Elî drew attention to the trials under the name of Kobanî Trial, “The issue is not whether to support Kobanî or not. Kurdish people won a victory in Kobanî. They (the Turkish government) want to revenge on politicians of the HDP for the victory in Kobanî. We are Kurdish people; no matter which part we live in (referring to four parts of Kurdistan), our hearts and souls are Kurdish. We are parts of this integrity of feeling and we are responsible for our success and happiness. No trial can break the integrity that exists in the soul.”

“They fear the unity of the Kurds”

Reminding that fighting against ISIS and its derivatives and defending themselves cannot be considered a crime, Hîva Mihemed Elî pointed out that the will of the Kurdish people has stopped those who try to kill them. Hîva Mihemed Elî paid her respect to all political prisoners, particularly to HDP politicians standing trial. She said her heart beats with support for the politicians standing trial in the Kobanî Trial and added, “Turkey fears that the Kurds will unite in spirit. It actually violates the norms of international law due to this fear by using this Kobanî Trial as an excuse.”