JINHA

ŞIRNEX – Yasemin Çıkmaz, burned to death along with eight of her friends in Cizre, lived a life as humble and tenacious as the jasmine flower for which she was named. Yasemin’s father spoke about his daughter, saying her struggle would go on.

The bodies of 135 people killed in basements in the town of Cizre, assaulted by Turkish state forces while those wounded in the town took refuge inside, are currently waiting in morgues across the area. The majority of the families who come to identify their children are unable to identify the burned and disfigured bodies. One of the unidentifiable bodies is that of Yasemin Çıkmaz, burned to death in the second of three Cizre basements that have come to be known as the “basements of savagery,” along with eight of her friends.

Yasemin’s father Abdullah Çıkmaz is waiting in Silopi with the hope of finding his daughter’s body. He began to speak by wishing condolences to all Kurdish people for the deaths.

Abdullah stressed that those killed in Cizre were there for their dignity and their honor. The family’s home was in the heavily besieged Cudi neighborhood, but they were staying in the Dicle neighborhood during the siege.

“My daughter took her clothes and went to our house—to the Cudi neighborhood, that is,” said Abdullah. “When the attack happened, she had to take refuge in the basement. She was there for a week. We didn’t get any word from her, but we saw her name on TV as one of the wounded in the second basement.”

Abdullah called emergency services and the police, but no one answered. Finally, a representative at emergency services told him that they had gone as far as the avenue near the basement, but no one came out. Abdullah replied that his daughter was wounded, which was why she was unable to reach the avenue. That was the last he heard of her.

Abdullah referred to what happened in the basements as “savagery.

“We looked at the dead bodies in Mardin, too. Apparently chemical weapons had been used,” said Abdullah. “It’s a savage situation. Even if someone kills someone, they don’t slay them in this savage way.

Abdullah said the families stand with their lost loved ones and won’t give up their struggle. He called his daughter good, calm, hardworking and always concerned with the people.

For days, the family has been in Silopi, but hasn’t been able to retrieve Yasemin’s body.

“Even if they kill us in the thousands, thousands more will follow in their footsteps. Our daughter is our honor, our flower. The jasmine flowers won’t wilt,” said Abdullah. “It’s winter, and the jasmine seems wilted, but soon my daughter will bloom again.

“They will never silence us with guns and tanks,” said Abdullah. “We won’t give up this struggle; we stand behind our martyrs.”

(ht/gc/cm)