Qamishlo- “Letters from Sinjar (Kurdish: Nameyên ji Şengalê)”, a film directed by Dersîm Zêrevan, was screened at the Amûdê Cinema in Qamishlo, a city in North and East Syria on November 13. The film tells the pain, hope, difficulties and struggles of Yazidi women in Shengal (Sinjar). The film consists of six parts and each part is about a letter.

“We will always stand by our people”

Making a speech at the film screening, filmmaker Dersim Zêrevan said, “Today, chemical weapons are used against the guerrillas for freedom in the Kurdistan mountains, I strongly condemn the use of chemical weapons against the guerrillas. The guerrillas, who make efforts and fight across Kurdistan, have fought to liberate people. The guerrillas are our source of inspiration influencing our artworks. I dedicate this film to the heroes who came to save Shengal. November 13 is the anniversary of the liberation of Shengal and the day when the Amûdê Cinema was burned down. We will always stand by our people and report what they experienced to the world.”

Amûdê Cinema

On November 13, 1960, the Amûdê Cinema was burned down in a fire. On that day, more than 500 Kurdish children went to the cinema to watch a movie in solidarity with the Algerian struggle for independence. A fire broke out in the cinema and about 283 children died inside it. Many people have claimed that the Syrian regime started the fire. The fire in Amude city of North and East Syria is still seen as a symbol of the oppression and injustice against the people of Western Kurdistan.