JINHA

ŞIRNEX - A mortar shell hit Şirin Altay's home in the Silopi district of Şırnak. She was seriously wounded. Her neighbours tried to evacuate her to hospital, but state forces prevented them. Şirin was at home wounded for days. When she finally reached the hospital, she could not be saved. "The state kills us in our homes and they want us to be silent," said Şirin's neighbours.

Mother of five Şirin Altay was seriously wounded due to a mortar shell that hit her home on December 24 in the Silopi district of Şırnak, under martial law attacks at that time. Şirin was sent to Batman Hospital. After 32 days, Şirin lost her struggle to stay alive. After the autopsy in Diyarbakır, her body was sent to Silopi. Şirin was buried in the cemetery of Yenişehir neighborhood two days ago. Sevgi Barın, Şirin Altay's neighbor, said, "The state persecutes Kurds and this persecution has become savagery. Şirin was a day laborer. She tried to look after her family."

Martial law under the name of "curfew" had been imposed in Silopi for 37 days. Sevgi stated that she was forced to leave her home by state forces. They attacked the town with tanks, artillery and mortars for 37 days. "This state is not the state of Kurds. If it was a state of Kurds, they would not attack us like that. Our children dug the trenches against the state's oppression. The trenches are for our security. They dug them to prevent the state from killing and torturing us."

Misriye Şakir, another of Şirin's neighbors, said that they tried to help Şirin. However, the state forces opened fire on area. Şirin couldn't be evacuated for days due to the state forces' attacks. Miskin said, "They attacked us with artillery. They killed civilians. They demolished our houses. They also killed our animals. However, we didn't leave our lands and we won't."

(ekip/gc/gd)