JINHA

WAN - As women washed the body of fallen YJA STAR guerrilla Kevser Eltürk in preparation for her funeral in Van, Turkey, they found traces of torture on her body. Women say they suspect the guerrilla was tortured to death.

YJA STAR guerrilla Kevser Eltürk (nom de guerre Ekin Wan) was killed near the Varto district of Muş province in Northern Kurdistan (Turkey). On Wednesday, her body was brought to her native city of Van for burial. A convoy accompanied her funeral procession as it entered the city. Women bore her coffin on their shoulders, carrying her to the cemetery in a cortege accompanied by flags and posters.

As thousands gathered at the cemetery, the final religious rites were conducted. The women who washed Kevser's body as part of the funeral preparations announced that they found signs of torture on her body and signs of a rope around her neck. Kevser was interred with the attendance of representatives from the Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP), Democratic Regions Party (DBP) and city government.

(mc/ht/fk/cm)