KNK calls on the international community to condemn attacks against journalists

The Kurdistan National Congress issued a statement condemning the Turkish attack that killed two Kurdish journalists in Sulaymaniyah.

The Kurdistan National Congress (KNK) issued a statement calling on the international community to "condemn the attack" that killed journalists Hêro Bahadin ann Gulistan Tara, and "hold the Turkish government accountable for its actions against journalists and civilians in the region. The safety of journalists must be prioritized, and their right to report freely must be protected."

The killed journalists, Gulistan Tara and Hêro Bahadîn, were dedicated journalists. Their commitment to reporting the truth and documenting the realities of life in Kurdistan and the broader region has been widely recognized, with numerous articles attributed to their names.

The KNK continued: "This attack is part of a disturbing pattern of targeted violence against journalists in the region, as Turkey has increasingly employed drone strikes to eliminate individuals it deems as ‘enemies,’ particularly those associated with the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK). Journalist and author Nagihan Akarsel was murdered outside her home in Sulaymaniyah (Silêmanî) in October 2022. ANHA correspondent Isam Abdullah was killed in November 2022 in a wave of Turkish air strikes in Dêrik. In 2023, a Jin TV vehicle was bombed by a Turkish drone in northern Syria. The driver, Necmeddîn Feysel Hec Sînan, was killed, while the correspondent Delîla Egîd suffered serious injuries. Her left arm was shredded and had to be amputated in an emergency operation. In July 2024, Murad Mîrza Ibrahim, an employee of the Yezidi radio station Çira FM, was killed as a result of a drone attack in the Şengal region in north-western Iraq. Journalist Medya Hasan Kemal from Çira TV and employee Xelef Xidir were injured in the attack."