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Mustafa Karasu, Executive Council member of the Kurdistan Communities Union (KCK) has recently shared his evaluations on a special program broadcast by Medya Haber TV.
Karasu spoke about the assassination of Yasin Bulut (Şükrü Serhat), a Kurdish political activist and a member of the Committee for Solidarity with the Families of Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) Martyrs, who on 17 September was shot dead in Sulaymaniyah (Silêmani) by a gunman who was allegedly working with the Turkish National Intelligence Organisation (MIT).
“I commemorate comrade Şükrü with respect. Şükrü was a friend who has been a part of the freedom struggle since 1978. He had spend more than 10 years in prisons. Then he came to the mountains. He dedicated his life to the struggle. He had no seperate life other than the struggle,” he said.
He went on: “If the daughters and sons of the Kurdish people dedicate their life to this struggle then we all should be respecting them. When we have martyrs like this friend, when the Turkish state attacks any of our friends whether in Sulaymaniyah or in Makhmour or wherever in the world these friends have to be highly respected and their bodies immediately as they fall martryed.”
He stated that the killing of Bulut targeted Suleymaniyah attempting to create chaos in this city, which has always been a cornerstone for the development of Kurdish culture and literature with its people who have always been open to progressive values and democratisation.
“This is an attack not only targeting our friend Şükrü, but also the people of Suleymaniyah and all of South Kurdistan,” he said.
Karasu spoke about their allegations that Turkey deploys chemical weapons on the ongoing cross-border operations. He condemned the silence of international powers and especially the United Nations regarding their repeated calls to investigate the use of chemical weapons by the Turkish army against the Kurdish fighters.
He stated that international powers, the US, Europe, the United Nations used to take allegations of chemical weapons use very seriously when there was an attack against them even if it was found out later there had been no use of chemical weapons, but now, he said, “chemical weapons are used on a daily basis. Every day they deploy toxic gases to break the resistance in the war tunnels. Why is there such a silence, we must ask the US, Europe, the United Nations.”
“When it is your ally, is it legitimate for them to use chemical weapons, toxic gases? It is really a shame of Europe, a shame of the US, a shame of the United Nations that they do not take the use of chemical weapons as an item in their agenda,” he said.
“The use of chemical weapons is a serious issue,” Karasu repeatedly said. “Of course, Kurdish people and their friends need to act on this. Chemical weapons are used against the guerrilla, people need to stop this. Turkey needs to be prosecuted in the court of human rights.”
The KCK Executive also talked on the ongoing cross-border operations launched by the Turkish army in northern Iraq, sharing strong criticisms about the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) for giving logistical support to the Turkish army.
“There is a blockade and it is the KDP who blockades the guerrilla. This is how the KDP will be recorded in history:
as a political power who wanted to leave the guerrilla without food and without bullets,” he said.
Despite all, Karasu insisted, “it is definitely the guerrilla who has won the battle during this five-months of resistance. It has been shown that it is possible to resist against the second biggest army of NATO and their technology.”
He continued: “Now imagine what it would be like if the KDP had not cooperated with Turkey, had not surrounded the guerrilla zones, had not cut the connection between guerrilla zones.
“It would be much more different, of course, because our friends carry on a resistance with the spirit of sacrifice, with so little food they are able to find and with the weapons they seized from the enemy.”
“Can you imagine their harsh circumstances? Despite such circumstances they give the Turkish army the hardest time. They are confident of victory, they are clear that it is not just a matter of capturing a few caves and war tunnels. There are serious political outcomes of this magnificent resistance that the guerrilla fighters have put up for five months now.”
Karasu criticised those circles who target and terrorise members of the PKK and sympathisers of the thoughts of Abdullah Öcalan.
“When DAESH came to Kirkuk and threatened Sulaymaniyah who ran for help? When they threatened Hewlêr (Erbil) who ran for help? When they attacked Sinjar who ran for help?” Karasu asked and went on: “During the defeat of DAESH in Rojava, thousands of PKK members fell martyred.”
“Wherever the Kurds are, there is the PKK. Wherever the Kurds are, there are sympathisers of leader Apo [Abdullah Öcalan], those who are dedicated to leader Apo. We all should explicitly show respect to those who follow and support the ideas of leader Apo and embrace the cadres and sympathisers of the PKK. These are the daughters and sons of the people who have fought for the liberation of this people.”
Karasu also shared his comments on the Long March undertaken in Germany by internationalist activists from Cologne to Aachen which ended in Aachen on 17 September. Young political activists from Germany, Austria, Sweden, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom and Switzerland participated in the march entitled (Hand in Hand-Arms in Arms: Come to the Fight of Freedom (Dest Bi Dest-Mil Bi Mil; Werin Cenga Azadiyê”).
“Why do internationalists participate in the struggle at this level? The ecological-democratic paradigm of leader Apo based on women’s freedom actually represents the hope of all humanity. This is why we observe such participation,” he said.
“The freedom struggle of the Kurdish people,” he further underlined, “has become the freedom struggle of humanity. There are friends of the Kurdish people everywhere; all around the world from New Zealand to Iceland, from Norway to South Africa.”
