In the guerrilla-held Medya Defense Zones in southern Kurdistan (northern Iraq), fighters of the Free Women's Troops (YJA Star) marked International Women's Day on 8 March with a military ceremony followed by a celebration. Hêzil Özgür, a member of the YJA Star Command Council, gave a speech in which she congratulated all fighting women around the world on 8 March and especially mentioned the mothers of martyrs and the prisoners of the Turkish colonial state. The commander called Abdullah Öcalan the "architect of freedom" and remembered "with respect and gratitude" the martyrs of the women's liberation struggle.

"With the spring of 2022, we are entering an important phase of the liberation struggle. World War III began in our region long ago and is now spreading to many places around the world. As this war continues in full force, it is becoming increasingly visible that it is the result of a systemic crisis. In this chaos, humanity has to pay the bill for this crisis and experience the suffering it has caused. Almost everywhere in the world, wars are taking place in various forms. Crises can be observed at all levels of society. This applies to the economy, politics, art, human relations and ethics. Our nature is experiencing a collapse. The world is in great trouble, resulting from patriarchal domination. There is hunger, poverty and suffering, societies are under siege from all sides," said Hêzil Özgür.

This condition has the greatest impact on women, the commander said, and remarked that women were condemned to inequality thousands of years ago and today a brutal feminicide is being committed all over the world: "This is why women are in resistance all over the world. They are rebelling and fighting back. To overcome the collapse caused by the male domination mindset, we rely on the libertarian minds of women. This is the only way to stop the destruction. As Abdullah Öcalan had already predicted, the women's liberation struggle will shape and change this century. Women's struggles will overcome all reactionary systems and fascist structures. And the greatest resistance will be in Kurdistan."

The guerrilla commander went on to explain that massive attacks by the Turkish state on the Kurdish people and the women's movement are to be expected this year. 2022 is therefore of great importance for the liberation movement and the YJA Star will offer determined resistance, she added.