On 19 December 2024, our journalist friends Nazım Daştan and Cihan Bilgin were killed in a Turkish drone strike. Their vehicle was deliberately targeted as they travelled from the Tishrin Dam to Sirin (Sarrin) in northern Syria on the trail of the truth. The Turkish state’s fear of that truth was once again exposed by this attack, because Nazım and Cihan did not just document the facts with their cameras and pens, they also dismantled the intricate web of lies that sustains the machinery of special war.
In the heart of Rojava, they were at the forefront of the struggle for freedom. On the banks of the Euphrates, they spoke with the defenders of the homeland, documenting the resistance at the Tishrin Dam and Qara Quzak (Qere Qozaq) Bridge. These two courageous journalists spoke to the conscience of their people and humanity. They did not stop at announcing the truth to the world; each of the articles they wrote served as a moral beacon for the struggles of their people, and a slap in the faces of the oppressors.
But Nazım and Cihan were more than just journalists. They had a mission that went far beyond journalism. They were dedicated to raising the voice of the Kurdish people and tearing down the veil between truth and tyranny, and they put their careers and their lives on the line as courageous defenders of this cause .
Nazım Daştan’s work in the years 2017-2018 during the operation against ISIS for the liberation of Raqqa (Reqa) was more than a journalistic endeavour, it was an important historical record. Nazım documented the links between ISIS and Turkey, exposing this shadowy alliance. Had this investigation been carried out by a European journalist, it would have won global acclaim. But the silence surrounding the Kurdish struggle, reinforced by the focus of Western institutions on Turkey’s so-called ‘security concerns’, revealed the strategic, interest-driven nature of their priorities. Against this wall of silence, Nazım’s voice rang clear and proclaimed the truth.
As far Cihan Bilgin, she had become the voice of women’s struggle and women’s revolution in Rojava. Her camera and her pen were not restricted to documenation of the resistance; they also celebrated the victories of women over tyranny, solidarity between peoples and the fight for freedom. Every article she wrote and every image she captured bore witness to women’s triumphs over oppression and inspired countless others in the struggle for liberation.
The Kurdish people are no longer just a community of victims, but a people that has triumphed over barbarism, as evidenced by the heroism of individuals like Nazım and Cihan. Their commitment to the struggle has documented each of their people’s rightful victories. As chroniclers of these victories, Nazım and Cihan defended the truth, boosting the strength and morale of their people in their fight for justice.
For years, the Turkish state has targeted journalists like Nazım and Cihan. For years, the reports they prepared in northern Syria exposed the barbarity of ISIS, but also Turkey’s covert activities in the region making them into targets. Eventually they were murdered, but silencing them has proved impossible, because their struggle, and their voice, the voice of truth, have become symbols of the peoples’ struggle for freedom.
Turkey attempted with this attack to erase both the memory and the documentation of the resistance as recorded by the free press. But the pens and cameras of Nazım and Cihan have inspired thousands more to take up their mantle. This struggle will continue from where they left it, with renewed strength. The Free Press remains a torch of resistance, unmasking the oppressors and championing the cause of the people.
