NORŞÎN ABDİ

 Kobanê- The Turkish state has intensified its attacks on North and East Syria since Turkey’s Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan claimed that the assailants behind Ankara’s attack on October 1 had received training in Syria. 49 people, including two children, have been killed and many power plants, oil fields, grain warehouses, factories and dams have been damaged in the Turkish ground and air attacks since October 5.

 Reacting to the Turkish attacks on North and East Syria, the women of Kobanê call for protection of the gains of the women's revolution.

‘It will see resisting women in every Kurdish woman’

Helmiya Osman thinks the aim of the Turkish state is to annihilate Kurdish people by attacking them. “Especially, women’s revolution has been targeted,” she said, “Although the Turkish state has committed crimes in North and East Syria, many countries remain silent. The Turkish state aims to expand its territory by occupying areas in North and East Syria. But it will fail to achieve this. It will see dozens of resisting women such as Arîn, Revan, Avesta and Zilan in every Kurdish woman. We follow in the footsteps of resisting women.”

 ‘We will not leave our lands and surrender’

Helmiya Osman recalled the 134-day resistance of the women of Kobanê against ISIS and said, “Dozens of civilians have been killed and injured in the recent attacks on the region. The Turkish state thinks that it will scare us and make us surrender by killing us. We will not leave our lands and surrender. The Turkish state has intensified its attacks on the region on the anniversary of the international conspiracy (against Kurdish leader Abdullah Öcalan) and it is not a coincidence.”

‘Women must protect the gains of the revolution’

Nada Al-Cadir has lived in Kobanê since she and her family were displaced from the city of Jarablus by the attacks of the Turkish state and Turkish-backed factions in 2013. “We had to leave our house in Jarablus due to the attacks. Since then, we have lived in Kobanê. We opened a factory named Al-Dayan in Kobanê to earn a living for our family. Our factory has been targeted twice in two months. It was first targeted and damaged on July 5. We rebuilt it; however, it was targeted and damaged again by the Turkish state. The Turkish state targets civilians and their properties. The aim of these attacks is to destroy the security and stability of the region. Women must unite and protect the gains of the revolution.”

‘We will keep defending our lands’

Bakra Şengal, another resident of Kobanê, thinks the aim of the Turkish state is to depopulate the region. “The Turkish state is afraid of the strong will of women,” she said, “As women of Kobanê, our message to the Turkish state, Tayyip Erdoğan and the whole world is that we will keep following in leader Öcalan’s ideology and thoughts and defending our lands. The people of the region do not need anyone but their own forces.”