Son Of Diyarbakir Mayor Killed in Rojava

Ali Narin, the son Seyid Narin – the co-mayor of Diyarbakir’s Sur Municipality – has been killed in Rojava, according to an article from the Turkish-daily Radikal.

Ali Narin, who was twenty-two years old, is reported to have been killed in clashes with groups linked to al-Qaeda. He was serving in an YPG unit.

Seyid Narin received condolences for his son from hundreds of people in Diyarbakir today at a local condolence house (taziyeevi). The family only received news of the death of Ali – whose code name in the guerillas was Dilşaht Ahmet – yesterday. The condolence house was decorated with photographs of Abdullah Öcalan, PKK flags, and pictures of Ali taken while he was in the mountains. Mayor Seyid Narin addressed those present, saying:

“My son had been a guerilla for three years. There was civil war in Syria. My son struggled against the gangs for the freedom of his people, of his own brothers, and for free tomorrows. As a result of this struggle he was martyred. But we also know that with every one of our comrades who is martyred our people take one step closer to freedom. And in this sense [we know] that this movement and this people has given up martys and will continue to do so. Until we win freedom our youth will defend the people in all four parts of Kurdistan. But our wish is to build a true democracy in keeping with the spirit of the 21st Century without any life being lost. We want this for the entire Middle East. We want this for Turkey. Therefore like other parents we are not making any calls for revenge. Our cry will be for peace, brotherhood and free tomorrows.”