Shiraz Nidal, one of the YPJ commanders from Saudi Arabia, stated that they are fighting for a just cause and said, “I have come to know the genocidal face of the Turkish state better with the recent attacks.”
The SDF (Syrian Democratic Forces) resistance at the Tishrin Dam and surrounding villages and the Qereqozax Bridge has been going on since December 8. The resistance is immortalized by the heroic stories of the people and the fighters. The YPJ (Women’s Defense Units), one of the main components of SDF, is also taking a leading role in this resistance.
The story of Shiraz Nidal, one of the YPJ commanders taking in the resistance, is remarkable. Shiraz Nidal holds a special place among Kurdish, Arab, Assyrian, Syriac, Armenian and Turkmen fighters. Sometimes she motivates her comrades with songs, sometimes with jokes. She fights with enthusiasm and morale.
Shiraz Nidal, a Saudi Arabian who joined the YPJ ranks after rasping the intellectual basis of the Rojava Revolution and abandoning her medical education, now serves as a commander on the battle fronts.
I met Shiraz Nidal in the battle zone and had the opportunity to chat with her and get to know her better. Shiraz Nidal came to Aleppo, Syria in 2018 to study medicine and nursing. She explained the reason for her participation in the YPJ ranks as follows: “I loved reading books, constantly improving my research. The more I read, the more I grasped the intellectual basis of the Rojava Revolution. At that time, these ideas impressed me a lot. Thus, I met the YPJ. Getting to know the YPJ pushed me to question the meaning of life. Life has no meaning if one does not add value to one's life and environment. The search for freedom was a result of these thoughts.
With this awareness, I joined the ranks of the YPJ in 2020, when the occupying Turkish state and its mercenaries were constantly attacking the regions of North and East Syria. We were in constant preparation against the attacks. We organized our forces in every way. The success of today's resistance is a result of those preparations.”
Stating that they are fighting for a just cause, Shiraz Nidal continued as follows: “We are fighters with a purpose and goal. The Turkish state and its mercenaries are only based on destruction and plunder. That is why their attacks end in failure. That is why they are increasing their air strikes. I have come to know the fascist, genocidal and terrorist mentality of the Turkish state much better in these attacks. The whole world must see the occupying and plundering policies of the Turkish state and its mercenaries. We will fight for freedom in a spirit of self-sacrifice until our last breath.”
