The resistance that twelve guerrilla fighters put up against the onslaught of the ISIS hordes on the Shengal (Sinjar) region in August 2014 is legendary. While thousands of KDP peshmerga fighters fled overnight before the invasion of the ISIS, leaving the people seemingly defenseless against the ISIS, and the world watched the genocide begin, twelve guerrilla fighters under the command of Hüseyin Acar (Dilşêr Herekol) secured the escape of more than one hundred thousand Yazidis and defended the Shengal Mountains against the ISIS superiority.

Martyred in battle in Hatay

The People's Defense Center (HSM) has announced that Commander Dilşêr Herekol was martyred in the Amanos Mountains near Hatay in a skirmish with the Turkish army between October 18 and 19. The statement said: "The information that our commander and comrade Dilşêr Herekol (Hüseyin Acar), who was responsible for the legendary resistance that prevented the genocide of the Yazidi population, was martyred in a battle during the operation in the Amanos Mountains, has now unfortunately become a certainty. We express our sincere condolences to the esteemed patriotic family of Dilşêr, to the Yazidi people of Shengal and the resisting people of Botan, and also to the entire patriotic people of Kurdistan. We give our word again to realize the goals of the martyrs and to continue fighting until freedom."

Nom de Guerre: Dilşêr Herekol First-Last Name: Hüseyin Acar Birthplace: Eruh Names of Mother and Father: Emine – Abdullah Date and Place of Martyrdom: 19. October 2020 / Amanos

The Legacy of August 15

The People's Defense Center stated that Dilşêr Herekol was from the village of Torik (tr. Yanılmaz) near the resistance stronghold of Eruh district in the Siirt province. Eruh was the site of the guerrillas' first action on August 15, 1984. Herekol grew up hearing about the resistance and its commander Egîd (Mahsum Korkmaz) and the culture in Botan shaped by the liberation struggle. Refusing to work as a village guard for the Turkish state, his village was destroyed in 1994 and Dilşêr Herekol had to migrate with his family to the Turkish metropolises. At a young age, he joined the guerrillas in the Amanos region in 1997.

From Syrian detention back to the mountains

When he tried to reach the Medya Defense Zones during the retreat in 1999, he was captured by the Syrian regime and remained in Syrian custody for three years. In 2002, after his release, he went back to the mountains. After spending a year in the Medya Defense Zones, he went to the region of Gabar in North Kurdistan in 2003. He played an important role in the guerrilla offensive that began on June 1, 2004.”

"He filled the hearts of the enemy with fear"

In 2005, he moved to the Zap region and in 2007, after a long stay in the Medya Defense Zones, to Botan. The HSM said: "Dilşêr Herekol led many actions in Botan, inflicting heavy blows on the enemy and masterfully breaking free from ambushes. He was seriously wounded twice, but never retreated and he filled the hearts of the enemy with fear. In Botan, he matured into an experienced guerrilla commander. In 2012, in order to share his experience in the people's revolutionary war and command, and to take it to an even higher level with ideological training by our Party, he went to the Medya Defense Zones again. There, he did great things in training the many fighters who joined in 2013-2014 and prepared them excellently for life as guerrillas. At the same time, he served as a commander in coordination."

He became a legend with the Shengal Resistance

In 2014, ISIS, backed by Turkey, began its frenzied expansion. The massacres of ISIS fascism shook the world. The PKK especially saw the Yazidi population of Shengal threatened by the ISIS and sent a first group of twelve fighters under the command of Herekol to Şengal. Despite all obstacles by the KDP, the unit reached the Shengal region. It tried to organize the population of the region located near Mosul and prepare them for the impending attack. As a result of these preparations, Dilşêr Herekol and his eleven comrades were able to stop the ISIS genocide that began on August 3, 2014, organize the flight of large parts of the population into the mountains, and defend the Yazidi population there. In doing so, these guerrilla fighters laid the foundation for the region's self-defense by the Shengal Resistance Units (YBŞ).

With the help of fighters from the HPG and YJA-STAR and the support of the YPG and YPJ, an escape corridor was opened for the population, people were evacuated and Shengal was liberated from ISIS fascism step by step.

"Our comrade Dilşêr Herekol has received a place of honor in the hearts of Yazidis from Shengal region with his great efforts, sacrifice, courage, determination and prudent command. Many children born in Shengal were given his name. Even in his lifetime, he became a legend."

Guerrilla commander for 23 years

Subsequently, in 2016, after the Shengal region was able to defend itself, Dilşêr Herekol returned to the Medya Defense Zones along with the remaining guerrilla units. He repeatedly emphasized that the Turkish state was behind the ISIS terror. Therefore, he himself proposed to continue fighting against Turkish fascism in the Amanos Mountains in southern Turkey. He became a member of the area command of the Amanos region. There he led important resistance actions until his last battle.

The statement of the HSM said: "His struggle reached from Amanos to the prisons of the colonialists, from the Medya Defense Zones to Botan, from Botan to Shengal and then again to Amanos. Everywhere he proved himself as a successful Apoist commander and an exemplary militant during these 23 years."