In a statement issued on May 30, 2022, HPG Press Centre released information about an armed conflict that took place on the morning of May 29 between the invading Turkish army and the guerrillas in the battle positions of Martyr Berxwedan in the Martyr Şahin Resistance Area. The statement revealed that the officers of the Turkish army forcibly sent soldiers to the battle position in question.

“It has been observed by our forces that the invading soldiers do not want to move forward in battlegrounds and argue with their superiors. The Turkish officers sent a group of 4 soldiers towards the battle positions. This group was taken under control by our forces around the battle positions and struck by sabotage tactics. The dead bodies of the soldiers remained under the control of our forces. A total of 4 Turkish soldiers were killed, and military equipment and weapons belonging to the invaders were destroyed in this action. The dead bodies of the 2 soldiers are under the control of our forces,” the HPG statement said.

IMAGES DISCLAIM TURKISH AUTHORITIES…

However, the Turkish army not only concealed its casualties in the Martyr Şahin Resistance Area, but also disseminated fake news to the Turkish public. It came out that soldier Nuri Melih Bozkurt, who Turkish officials claimed to have died in a hospital where he was taken in an injured state, was actually killed in the Martyr Şahin Resistance Area and his body was taken over by the guerrillas.

The pictures of Bozkurt's body were taken by the guerrillas. A guerrilla speaking in video footage reveals that the soldier in question talked to him before he died, and his name was Melih. The guerrilla fighter adds that they killed two more Turkish soldiers in the same clash and took their bodies outside.

THE TURKISH ARMY THROWS THE BODIES OF ITS SOLDIERS FROM CLIFFS

The HPG released new information about 4 Turkish soldiers, including Nuri Melih Bozkurt, who were shot by HPG and YJA Star guerrillas in the Martyr Şahin Resistance Area on May 29, 2022. The HPG unveiled that the soldiers in question were forcibly sent to the battle tunnels by their commanders.

“Our friends kept track of them and listened to their conversations for hours before targeting them. They even heard during these conversations that the names of the soldiers were Burak, Islam and Melih. Our friends punished the soldiers who had been forcibly sent to the battle tunnels. They left two of them outside to allow their bodies to be retrieved. They kept Nuri Melih Bozkurt, who was seriously injured, in a quiet place. But he died soon after revealing that his name was Melih. Since the Turkish army conceals all its losses, our friends recorded Melih's death. Later, they placed his body in a place where the Turkish forces could take it. However, it was understood later on that instead of taking the bodies, the Turkish forces threw some of the bodies that were left outside from the cliffs. We do not know what was done to the dead body of the soldier that we photographed.”

HE 'WAS IN HOSPITAL, INJURED, NOT SAVED'

The HPG stated that the Turkish state openly misled the public and disseminated false news regarding the death of Nuri Melih Bozkurt. “Turkish officials released fake news about Melih Bozkurt, saying that 'he was in a hospital, was injured and could not be saved'. However, this soldier died in Zap. It remains unclear whether his body was even taken back. Turkish officials are deceiving the public. While we treat the dead bodies of Turkish soldiers in a human way, the Turkish army treats the dead bodies of both our forces and their own soldiers in the most brutal way.”

HPG: THEY TREAT THE BODIES OF OUR FIGHTERS ATROCIOUSLY

The HPG said that the Turkish state and army engaged in inhuman and immoral practices, pointing to the brutal methods against the guerrillas who were martyred.

“Just like ISIS, Turkish forces commit atrocious acts on the dead bodies of our comrades who were martyred. Just as Turkish authorities torture our civilian people, they also insult the dead bodies of our fellow fighters with savage methods. We have a lot of documents that confirm Turkish atrocities. The Turkish state will one day pay the price before history, common sense of humanity and the international arena. Perhaps the torture of the dead bodies of our fellow fighters and the deliberate dissemination of their images by different media outlets are part of the psychological war waged by the Turkish army and government against our people. They think that they are gaining the upper hand by doing this. However, as the inhuman invading troops, devoid of spirituality and moral values, are motivated in this way, it will hit them back like a boomerang.

Almost every day, we read in newspapers how mentally ill soldiers and police officers murder their relatives and then shoot themselves. All these cases are connected with the atrocities carried out in Kurdistan. Maybe they think that they are weakening us psychologically, but we have seen that these psychological warfare methods make them lose the most.”