HESNA MIHEMED

Shahba – In 2018, a historical resistance took place in Afrin. For58 days, the people of Afrin defended their city against the Turkish occupying state, which has the second largest standing military force in NATO.Despite all brutal attacks, the women of Afrin were determined to defend their homeland by becoming a human shield against Turkish colonialism and fascism. Their voice of resistance echoed all over the whole world and many delegations joined the struggle.

Şerîn Hesen witnessed the occupation attacks of the Turkish state on Afrin and took part in the resistance against the attacks. "The resistance of Afrin was in the first place a women’s resistance” she said, stating that they keep resisting in Shahba to return to Afrin.

‘Afrin was the hometown of people from different nationalities and identities’

Şerîn Hesen described the Turkish state's attacks on Afrin and its occupation as follows: "The occupying Turkish state often threatened Afrin and on January 20, 2018, it began to carry out its brutal plans by using 72 warplanes.  The Turkish state targeted Afrin because the people of Afrin played a leading role in the revolution in North-East Syria. Afrin was the hometown of people from different nationalities and identities, who always supported each other. The women of Afrin played an important role in forming communes and councils after the establishment of the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (AANES). Afrin was targeted because it was known as the city of women.”

‘The resistance wore the color of women’

Talking about the resistance of the women in Afrin, Şêrîn Hesen said, "Women led the resistance in Afrin. The whole world should see how the 58-day resistance in Afrin was important because it was a resistance against the second largest army in NATO. During the resistance, we, as women, formed committees to defend their people; we held marches and protests to defend our homeland.We took to the streets without fear, that’s why we say that the resistance wore the color of women.”

 'People became human shields against the attacks'

Şerîn Hesen recalled the “Afrin belongs to the Afrin people” slogan chanted by the women of Afrin.. “The women of Afrin used their bodies as human shields to defend their city. We were determined to resist to the end. Our resistance echoed all over the world. Delegations from many countries came to Afrin and joined the resistance and became human shields against the attacks.”

‘We celebrated the International Women’s Day’

Şerîn Hesen told us that they had held a march to mark the International Women’s Day on March 8 in the midst of attacks: "We held a march with the participation of women from Southern Kurdistan, Palestine and Lebanon. During the march, the unity of women was emphasized. All women chanted that no state could break the unity of women. In Afrin, women, mothers and children defended their homeland together to show the strength of welatparezî (love to the land).”

‘Women were taking action against the attacks’

During the march, the Turkish fascist state threw bombs close to the square in order to frighten the people, Şêrîn Hesen said. “We kept marching with all enthusiasm to show the Turkish state that we would never stop our resistance.”

‘We keep resisting’

At the end of her speech, Şerîn Hesen said: "The occupying Turkish state committed many massacres in Afrin. In the last days of the resistance, the clashes intensified in the city center. We had to leave Afrin to prevent another Halabja massacre from being committed. We left Afrin and settled in a camp in Shahba. Although we suffer from difficult living conditions in the camp due to the siege imposed by the Syrian regime, we keep resisting. Now, we stay in Shahba to return to Afrin. We are determined to return to a free Afrin.”