YJŞ fighter Faraşîn Şengalî laid to rest

YJŞ fighter Faraşîn Şengalî was one of three members of the Yazidi resistance units who were injured in the attacks by the Iraqi army in Shengal and later died.

A YJŞ fighter, wounded in the attacks by the Iraqi army on security forces in the Shengal region of Yezidi, has not survived her injuries. Faraşîn Şengalî was buried on Thursday at the Şehîd Berxwedan û Şehîd Dilgeş Cemetery on Shengal Mountain.

Provocations by Iraqi security forces overshadowed the funeral. After the body of Faraşîn Şengalî was recovered at the hospital in the town of Xanesor, the mourners set off towards Sinunê. At the checkpoint there, the convoy of several dozen vehicles was stopped. Iraqi military blocked the passage and tried to disperse the crowd. Only when the Yazidi security forces Asayîşa Êzîdxanê arrived was the convoy able to escort the coffin to the mountain area.

Faraşîn Şengalî's funeral began with a military ceremony held by the resistance and women's units YBŞ and YJŞ and the Asayîşa Êzîdxanê. In addition to numerous fighters, representatives of all institutions of the autonomous administration in Shengal, civil society organizations such as the Association of War Members and the Yazidi women's movement TAJÊ were present.

Viyan Hebabî from the YJŞ expressed her condolences to the relatives of Faraşîn Şengalî and the entire Yazidi community and announced retaliation.

"We will defend what we have won," Hebabî said. The fighter described the escalation of the attacks in Iraq as a "blow against the will of the Yazidi people". The recent aggression against Shengal is not independent of the attempts by the Iraqi and southern Kurdish governments to enforce the so-called Shengal Agreement. “The aim is to smash all the structures that have been painstakingly built up since the last Ferman (edict). But regardless of whether the attacks against us come from Baghdad, Hewlêr and Ankara, we are determined to defend our autonomy. Our solidarity applies to the path of the fallen.”

YBŞ Command: Attacks on Shengal linked to KDP and Turkey

Tensions and clashes provoked by the Iraqi army have been raging in Shengal since the beginning of the week. The YBŞ command had also previously stated that the military mobilization of Iraqi troops in Shengal was aimed at enforcing the sharply criticized agreement between Baghdad and Hewlêr, which was made over the heads of the Yazidi population. In October 2020, after months of negotiations, the South Kurdish regional and Iraqi central governments agreed to sign the "Shengal Agreement".

The agreement consists of a series of security and administrative measures and defines areas of responsibility for the authorities. The autonomous administration of Shengal and the majority of the affected population are sceptical about the agreement, viewed as an attempt by both governments to take control of the region and deny the Yazidi people their own political and administrative rights.