Hunergeha Welat, an artistic and cultural community founded in Qamishli (Qamişlo), North and East Syria, in 2014, has released a new music video, Bendava me ye (It’s our dam!), filmed at the Tishreen (Tişrin) Dam on the Euphrates, and dedicated to the ongoing people’s resistance against Turkey’s attacks. The piece, sung in Kurdish by artist Surneya Serekaniye, uses music to convey the struggle and determination of the local community.
The group continues to play a vital role in promoting art and culture in North and East Syria (Rojava), giving voice to the resistance through music. Released on 9 February, the video captures the spirit of resistance of the people of North and East Syria at the Tishreen Dam, amassing 25,000 views within the first 24 hours.
The music video ends with photographs of slain journalists Nazim Daştan and Cihan Bilgin, who were killed by a Turkish drone strike on 19 December while reporting on the latest developments at the Tishreen Dam. The video also features images of other civilians killed while participating in the protests at the dam, including prominent Kurdish actor Bavê Teyar and Zenobia women’s council member Karam Ehmed Al-Shehab Al-Hemed.
Since 8 January, groups from various regions in North and East Syria have been staging a rotating sit-in on top of the Tishreen Dam to protect it from Turkish attacks. Turkish drones and the Turkey-affiliated Syrian National Army (SNA) have repeatedly targeted convoys heading to the dam, as well as the sit-in itself, resulting in at least 24 deaths and over 250 injuries.
The new release follows the song Gujje Çemê Me (The Current of Our River), released on 31 December in support of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) and their resistance against the Turkish military and the SNA, both at the Tishreen Dam and at the Qara Quzak (Qere Qozaq) bridge over the Euphrates.
Founded in 2014, the Hunergeha Welat music community has recorded nearly 300 songs and 60 music videos, and provides musical education for children. Their work reflects the revolutionary spirit in North and East Syria, documenting the resistance. The initiative is named after the Kurdish artist Welat, who was killed in an ISIS car bomb attack in 2013.
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