The Syrian Democratic Council (MSD) issued a written statement on the 5th anniversary of the martyrdom of Hevrin Xelef, Secretary General of the Future of Syria Party.

The statement said that the assassination of Hevrin Xelef was a turning point in the war in Syria and revealed the biggest obstacles to the peace and democracy process in Syria.

“Martyr Hevrin is a unique example of pioneering women. Hevrin worked with all her strength to bring peace, justice and equality to all components of the Syrian people. Martyr Hevrin Xelef's political aim was to emphasise that diversity is the strength and unity of the Syrian people,” MSD said.

“This unfortunate act of terrorism shows the true face of this group, which represents the nature of Turkey's Syria policy,’ the statement said, adding that the assassination of Hevrin Xelef by the Ahrar al-Sharqiya group, which is on the international crime list, is a violation of all international laws and agreements.

MSD called on the international powers to hold the murderers to account for all the crimes committed by the gangs of the Turkish state against the Syrian people and to fulfil their moral and legal responsibilities.

“Justice for Hevrin Xelef and the victims of the war in Syria, the establishment of lasting peace and the foundation of a multi-faceted democracy is possible through the construction of a state that respects the rights of all,’ the statement concluded.

Background

Hevrîn Xelef, or Havrin Khalaf, was born in 1984 in Dêrik city of northern Syria. She grew up as a child in a socially and politically engaged family. Four of her brothers and Hevrin’s sister Zozan joined the liberation struggle and fell in the ranks of the Kurdish freedom movement.

Her mother Sûad participated in many popular assemblies of Abdullah Öcalan. What she learned here also had a great influence on the education and personality development of Hevrîn. After completing her education in Dêrik, Hevrîn studied agronomy in Aleppo. After completing her studies, she returned to Dêrik. With the beginning of the revolution in Rojava, Hevrîn participated in the struggle for freedom and in the work of the youth movement. A short time later, she began organizing civil society development activities and took on senior roles in the Qamishlo Economic Council. With the proclamation of the Democratic Autonomous Administration, she took over responsibility as deputy co-chairperson in the Energy Committee of the Democratic Self-Government in the Canton of Cizîre. In 2015, she played an important role in improving and strengthening the energy supply and economic work in the canton of Cizîre.

Her work paid particular attention to the economic needs of women and the development of women's economics. In 2018, Hevrîn participated in the process of setting up and founding the Syrian Future Party with the aim of advocating for the interests of all Syrian population groups and a democratic renewal of Syria. At the founding of the Syrian Future Party on March 27, 2018 in Raqqa, she was selflessly committed to the task of Secretary General. Speaking on the occasion of the 8th anniversary of the popular uprising in Syria, Hevrîn expressed her conviction that the political crisis in Syria cannot be resolved by war. She said, "Eight years have passed. The popular uprisings against the crisis and the struggle of the peoples of Syria have been widely sacrificed and turned into a war. The ongoing crisis in Syria, which is the reason for the displacement and murder of the population, cannot be settled without a political solution.”

In each of her speeches, Hevrîn emphasized the importance of dialogue among the various Syrian political forces and communities. She insisted that peoples should determine their own future and shape their own political and social life together. Through her political struggle, Hevrîn called on all circles of society and political actors to participate in a democratic solution to the crisis in Syria.

With the beginning of the Turkish occupation war against the territories of the Democratic Autonomous Administration in northern and eastern Syria on October 9, 2019, Hevrîn resolutely continued her political struggle. In an ambush by members of a jihadist killer gang allied with Turkey, she was executed.

Hevrîn played an unforgettable role in the women's revolution of Rojava and the community of peoples through her life and work.

The 35-year-old Kurdish politician was brutally murdered on 12 October 2019 by Islamic militiamen linked to the Turkish state, immediately after the Turkish invasion of Northern and Eastern Syria. She was taken out of her car during a Turkish-backed attack and executed by Turkish-backed mercenary factions on the International Road between Qamishlo and Manbij, where her driver was also martyred.