HPG pays tribute to guerrilla Kawa Çekdar

Kawa Çekdar (Ibrahim Demir) joined the freedom guerrillas of Kurdistan from Germany. He fell a martyr in resistance against the Turkish invasion in the Zap region.

Guerrilla Kawa Çekdar (Ibrahim Demir) was killed as the result of an attack by the Turkish army in South Kurdistan. The press center of the People's Defense Forces (HPG) said in a statement that the guerrilla was born in Istanbul, but had joined the guerrillas from Germany. He fell as a martyr in August while resisting the Turkish invasion on the western front of Şehîd Delîl in the Zap. The HPG offer their condolences to his family and the people of Kurdistan.

 Codename: Kawa Çekdar

 First and last name: Ibrahim Demir

 Place of birth: Istanbul

 Mother and Father’s Names: Naime – Mehmet

 Date and place of death: August '23-Medya Defense Areas

The HPG said in its statement that "Kawa Çekdar came from Northern Kurdistan. His family was expelled from their homeland as part of Turkey's depopulation policy and had to move to Istanbul, where Kawa was born. He was already familiar with the Kurdish freedom movement as a child and followed the developments in the struggle. In 2004, he went to Germany."

The statement added that "in Germany, Kawa Çekdar was active in the Kurdish youth movement and arrested several times because of his commitment. The Rojava revolution motivated him to become even more active. When ISIS invaded Kurdistan and the Turkish state razed entire districts to the ground to end the resistance to   defend the democratic autonomy in various cities, Kawa's determination grew. Capitalist modernity had turned the Middle East into a sea of blood for its own profit and incited the peoples who had lived together as brothers and sisters against each other for thousands of years. Fleeing the region became the norm and thousands of people fell into the misconception of seeing Europe as a safe haven. They risked their lives to get to Europe."

It was precisely at this time that Kawa set off in the opposite direction. He read the writings of Abdullah Öcalan and decided to turn his back on false freedom in Europe and join the guerrillas in Kurdistan in 2018.

The HPG said: "Kawa Çekdar entered guerrilla life with great enthusiasm. Life in the mountains was not easy at first. However, he had a strong will and was supported by his comrades. With the guerrillas, he quickly learned to speak his native language, Kurdish, fluently. With his cheerful and energetic personality, he never failed to emphasize how much he was impressed by the beauty of the mountains as well as collective life. The writings of Abdullah Öcalan were the guide in his life. He educated himself ideologically and learned how to use various weapons. Among other things, he was trained as a sniper. For him there was no difference between big and small tasks, he approached all revolutionary tasks seriously and infected his comrades with his enthusiasm.

After a long stay in Gare, he went to the Zap region at his own suggestion to take part in the resistance against the intensified attacks by the Turkish army. On the western front of Şehîd Delîl, he was involved in a mobile unit in various actions that led to high casualties for the invading troops."