Eight guerrillas killed by Turkish chemical weapons in Zap, South Kurdistan

Having fought ISIS and survived, guerrilla fighters Rohat, Şevîn, Şerda, Xemgîn, Zilan, Deniz, Sema and Demhat were killed by Turkish chemical weapons in the Zap region of the guerrilla-held Medya Defense Zones in southern Kurdistan (northern Iraq).

The Press Center of the People's Defense Forces (HPG) announced that eight guerrilla fighters were killed by Turkish chemical weapons in the area of Çiyareş in April.

The identity details of the fallen guerrillas are as follows:

Nom de Guerre: Rohat Dengdar
First-Last Name: Faysal Yılmaz
Birthplace: Colemêrg
Mother's-Father's Name: Feyruz – Abdulkadir
Date and Place of Martyrdom: 
April, 2022 / Zap

 

Nom de Guerre: Şevîn Şemzînan
First-Last Name: Zozan Erenç
Birthplace: Colemêrg
Mother's-Father's Name: Nedime – Üzeyir
Date and Place of Martyrdom: April, 2022 / Zap

 

Nom de Guerre: Şerda Sosin
First-Last Name: Şeyma Sancar
Birthplace: Wan
Mother's-Father's Name: Nazlı – Halit
Date and Place of Martyrdom: April, 2022 / Zap

 

Nom de Guerre: Xemgîn Qelqelî
First-Last Name: Emrah Sezgin
Birthplace: Wan
Mother's-Father's Name: Şemsî Xanim – Burhan
Şehadet Tarihi ve Yeri: April, 2022 / Zap

 

Nom de Guerre: Zilan Besê
First-Last Name: Sîmav Hesen
Birthplace: Hesekê
Mother's-Father's Name: Kevser – Mehemed
Date and Place of Martyrdom: April, 2022 / Zap

 

Nom de Guerre: Denîz Reş
First-Last Name: Naila Mezeh
Birthplace: Kobanê
Mother's-Father's Name: Xeznê – İbrahim
Date and Place of Martyrdom: April, 2022 / Zap

 

Nom de Guerre: Sema Agirîn
First-Last Name: Evîn Şêxo
Birthplace: Hesekê
Mother's-Father's Name: Ehlam – Riyad
Date and Place of Martyrdom: April, 2022 / Zap

 

Nom de Guerre: Demhat Derwêş
First-Last Name: Bekrî Derwêş
Birthplace: Kobanê
Mother's-Father's Name: Rahime – Suheyl
Date and Place of Martyrdom: April, 2022 / Zap

"Our comrades Rohat, Şevîn, Şerda, Xemgîn, Zilan, Deniz, Demhat and Sema were killed in the chemical weapons attacks by the Turkish occupation forces in the resistance area of Çiyareş in the Zap region. Our comrades fought under the command of Rohat and Şevin and will forever lead our struggle as symbolic militants of the Zap resistance and stand for the insistence on a free Kurdistan."

Rohat Dengdar


Rohat Dengdar was born in Çelê (Çukurca) in the northern Kurdish province of Colemêrg (Hakkari). He grew up under Turkish military siege and knew both the oppression by the state and the Kurdish liberation struggle as a child. His uncle Dengdar was martyred in this struggle and Rohat had great sympathy for the guerrillas. He witnessed for himself that the Turkish state not only wants to physically exterminate the Kurdish youth, but also strives for cultural annihilation and promotes the abuse of drugs for this purpose. In 2013, he joined the guerrilla ranks and initially stayed in the Avaşîn region. In 2014, he went to Şengal (Sinjar) to defend the Yazidi community against the ISIS genocide and fought with great courage against the Islamists supported by the Turkish state. He was one of the heroes who liberated Şengal at great sacrifice and handed over the defense of the region to the Şengal Resistance Units (YBŞ), which had since been established, in 2018. Rohat returned to the Medya Defense Zones and became one of the commanders of the HPG (People’s Defense Forces) in the Zap region. There he fought successfully against the Turkish army for years. Most recently, he was an area commander in Çiyareş.

Şevîn Şemzînan


Şevîn Şemzînan came from the district of the same name in Colemêrg. Şemzînan (Şemdinli) is considered one of the central places of Kurdish resistance and Şevîn grew up in this consciousness. When a revolutionary guerrilla operation under the command of Reşit Serdar and Rojîn Gewda was carried out in Şemzînan in 2012, Şevîn joined the armed struggle. She evaluated this step as a rebirth. She underwent ideological training and studied Abdullah Öcalan's women's liberation ideology intensively. She also developed quickly on the military level and became a commander within a short time. She stayed in Xakurke for a long time, where she coordinated the guerrilla activities and took part in numerous actions against the Turkish occupation forces herself. With her military experience, she became one of the leading commanders of YJA Star. In 2020, she was in the Mahsum Korkmaz Academy for advanced training and assumed leadership responsibilities. After that, she went to Zap region and fought against Turkish occupation.

Şerda Sosin


Şerda Sosin was born in Wan (Van). As a teenager, she developed awareness about the Kurdish issue and the capitalist system. She rejected the life within this system and joined the guerrillas in 2012. In the mountains, she stayed in different regions within the Medya Defense Zones and finally went to Şengal to defend the Yazidi community. There she participated in many offensives against ISIS and contributed to the liberation of the region. During this time, she gained great military and organizational experience, which she completed with ideological education. After the liberation of Şengal, she returned to the mountains. Since 2019, she was one of the commanders of YJA Star in Zap region. She participated in the guerrilla resistance in a leading position during the Turkish invasion in 2021.


Xemgîn Qelqelî


Xemgîn Qelqelî came from the district of the same name in Wan province. Hundreds of young people from Qelqelî (Özalp) have joined the Kurdish liberation struggle, and Xemgîn grew up in a corresponding environment. He himself joined the guerrillas in 2015 in response to the Turkish extermination concept. After basic training in the mountains, he participated in the defense of Maxmur and Kirkuk against ISIS and fought on various fronts against the Islamist invasion of southern Kurdistan. In 2018, he returned to the mountains and joined the Zap region, where he completed the military experience he gained with training in modern guerrilla tactics and furthered his ideological education. He took part in numerous actions against the Turkish occupation forces in Zap and showed great drive and willpower until the end.

Zîlan Besê

Zîlan Besê came from Dêrik in Rojava but was born in Hesekê. Her family had been active in the Kurdish liberation movement since the early days and participated in the Rojava revolution with great commitment. Many of Zîlan's relatives died in this struggle. Zîlan grew up with a revolutionary consciousness. When she was old enough, she joined the movement herself and motivated many other young people to take this step. She worked in Rojava for a while and joined the guerrillas in the mountains in 2016, where she was trained to become a professional fighter of the YJA Star. On her own suggestion, she went to the Zap region and resisted the Turkish occupation.

Deniz Reş


Deniz Reş was born in the village of Boxaz near Kobanê and belonged to the Kêtikî tribe. Her relatives met Abdullah Öcalan personally and took active responsibility in the Kurdish liberation struggle. Deniz knew the PKK's standards for a free life as a child. When ISIS attacked Kobanê in 2014, many people from the region resisted together with the militants. One of these brave people who fell in the process was Ahmed Reş, an uncle of Deniz. In 2017, Deniz joined the guerrillas and underwent training, which allowed her to become even more familiar with the PKK and to focus intensively on the issue of women's liberation. She quickly progressed and was trained as a sniper at a military academy. In 2020, she went to the Zap region and took on important tasks as a professional militant of the YJA Star.

Demhat Derwêş

Demhat Derwêş was born in Kobanê and belonged to the Kêtikî tribe. He grew up in the atmosphere of the Rojava revolution. His cousin Axîn Ronahî fell in the fight against ISIS in 2017. Her death exerted a great influence on Demhat and solidified his awareness of the need for armed struggle. In 2020, he went to the mountains and became a guerrilla fighter. His first area of practice was Gare, after which he went to the Zap region and fought most recently in Çiyareş.

Sema Agirîn

Sema Agirîn was born in the village of Mişefre near Hesekê and grew up in the atmosphere of the Rojava revolution. Her childhood and youth were marked by the oppression of the Baath regime, the massacres of ISIS and the attacks of the Turkish state. Several of her relatives joined the Kurdish liberation struggle, and some of them died. She herself joined the guerrillas in 2019. In the mountains, she received military and ideological training and quickly developed. Most recently, she fought in Çiyareş in the Zap region.

Calling Rohat, Şevîn, Şerda, Xemgîn, Zilan, Deniz, Sema and Demhat exemplary fighters for a dignified life in Kurdistan, HPG expressed their condolences to the relatives of the martyrs and the Kurdish people.