Let us imagine a tree that grew from a seed that grew for years and anchored its roots deep in the earth. If you ripped a tree out of the earth and moved it to another earth, it would perhaps continue to live, but it would not bloom as beautifully and magnificently as before. It would be more sensitive to storms and thunderstorms that would make it sway. The policy of the hegemonic, colonialist system of separating societies from their earth and forcing them to flee with wars and massacres works according to this principle. The people of Afrin carried out a historic resistance against this war policy. The occupation of Afrin in 2018 is only the culmination of a long history of cultural genocide to which the Kurds were exposed everywhere, including in Afrin. But even when the society fled Afrin from the massive occupation attacks of the Turkish army, it did not lose hope of returning for a moment. Accordingly, the society stuck together and built a life for itself in the nearby Shehba region. Always with the endless love and solidarity for Rêber APO and the effort to organize itself according to the principles of the revolutionary people’s war, the society defended itself against storms of the dirty assimilation policy, the special war and the physical attacks of the fascist Turkish state on Shehba.
The symbol of Afrin is the olive tree, and it is not easy to topple it. Therefore, it is no coincidence that the fascist Turkish state and its jihadist gangs again chose the region around Shehba to launch a new, major wave of attacks these days. Although the society had already left its homeland 6 years ago, it did not allow itself to be divided this time and set off together for the Tabqa and Raqqa region so as not to be exposed to murderous massacres by the fascist gangs again. Greater than the grief is the anger at the crimes that are once again taking place before the eyes of the world. Greater than the media’s attempts to portray the evacuation of society in a false light is the power of organization, the mutual help of the population and the autonomous self-government, which is also continuing in the refugee centers of Tabqa and Raqqa. The attitude of the people is clear. The NATO-backed occupation plan of the dictator Erdogan is responsible for the fact that 200,000 people have once again left their place of refuge and set off for an uncertain future. It is the impetus that Erdogan has received from America, Russia, Israel and Europe that is leading him to such atrocities today.
This is precisely why the society of Shehba is calling to us! No matter how much special war tries to numb our senses, we will never normalize war, even if there are a thousand wars, we must see it as our task to play our role on the right side. We must sharpen our conscience and ask ourselves what our responsibility is towards the people who left their lives and their land, all their security behind.
We must take our place and become active in the defense of Rojava! Because the power that can end all dirty wars in the Middle East is the power of youth and women, the power of democratic modernity, the power of Rêber APO. Therefore, let us unite our struggle and, with the strategy of revolutionary people’s war, in which everyone in society takes a place in defense, create a second Kobane and show the world that the will for freedom and the insistence on a free world can never be broken.
Solidarity with the refugees from Shehba!
End the fascist NATO war in the Middle East!
Long live the resistance in Rojava!
Long live Rêber APO!