Martyr Serdem always dreamed of going to the mountains

Serdem Agirî's childhood dream was going to the mountains and being a guerrilla, said his mother, Hamdiye Ehmed. He fell a martyr in a chemical weapon attack carried out by the Turkish army.

Serdem Agirî's childhood dream was going to the mountains and being a guerrilla, said his mother, Hamdiye Ehmed. He fell a martyr in a chemical weapon attack carried out by the Turkish army.

Serdem Agirî was one of the guerrillas who fell martyrs in the Turkish attacks carried out using chemical weapons in Zap, Metîna and Avaşîn.

Serdem Agirî (Osman Abdi) was born on 15 August 2002 to a patriotic family in Qamishlo, in Rojava. The fact that his family was patriotic and he grew up with the Rojava Revolution enabled Serdem to get to know the PKK. He took part in many activities, especially in self-defense.

Serdem, who dreamed of going to the mountains in his childhood, joined the Rojava Revolution in 2017. He took part in the front lines with great self-sacrifice to repel the invasion attacks carried out by the Turkish army. He fought in Serêkaniye. He actively defended his people and land in Rojava until 2020.

He wanted to go to the mountains

To realize his childhood dream, he went to the mountains of Kurdistan. Being aware of the fact that the war waged in the mountains as well as in Rojava Kurdistan is a war to protect the existence of a people, he became a guerrilla. Without hesitation, he embraced every task with love, with his self-sacrificing and a hardworking personality.

Memories of Serdem live in the house

Serdem’s mother, father and siblings live in that house in Qamişlo's Qudurbeg neighbourhood, where Serdem was born and raised. The memories of Serdem, who grew up in a single-storey house with a garden and a pomegranate tree, are everywhere. His mother says that every time she sees the pomegranate tree, every time she goes out into the garden, she sees Serdem walking towards her. Serdem's motorbike is parked at the side of the pomegranate tree. Just like his clothes are in the closet.

His mother complains that she hasn’t got many photos of Serdem as she reaches for the album containing them.

A good student and a quiet child

Serdem was the 8th of 10 siblings. His mother describes his childhood as follows: “As a child, he was calm. He wouldn't have harmed anyone. Neither in the family nor in the circle of friends, no one was bothered by Serdem. He was not a naughty child. He was always on his own.  He was very close to his siblings. He didn't know how to say no. He didn't want to break anyone's heart. His friends valued Serdem very much. I knew when he was younger that he was a different kid. He was also successful in school life. He was on good terms with teachers and was always a favourite student.”

Serdem studied until the 6th grade at Viam School in Qamishlo, but dropped out of school due to the poor financial means of the family and started to work with his father. His mother says: “He was very attached to me. When I called Serdem, he would quickly run to me. Serdem had many friends. A friend would visit him every day. He had a humble personality. He was loved, he was a child, but he knew how to behave.”

Serdem’s mother said that her son fell a martyr in an attack in which chemical weapons were used.  She underlined that the KDP helped the Turkish army and said: “My house, my heart was on fire. Condolences to the people of Kurdistan. One Serdem is gone, but there are thousands of Serdems. Serdem and his friends must be avenged.”