Four workers killed in traffic accident laid to rest in Maxmur
Four workers who lost their life in a traffic accident while on their way from Maxmur camp to Baghdad, have been laid to rest.
A vehicle carrying workers from Maxmur refugee camp in Southern Kurdistan (Northern Iraq) had an accident while on its way to the Iraqi capital Baghdad early Sunday morning. Four workers died and two others were injured in the accident.
The workers who died were identified as Deniz Xelîl Deniz, Mehmud Sîso Tahir, Hogir Musa Yusuf and Cîhat Mihemed Hecî Mihê. Those injured were taken to the Geyare Hospital.
After bringing the casualties to the camp, residents of Maxmur held a farewell ceremony at the Culture and Arts Center which began with a minute of silence.
Following the ceremony where People’s Council Co-president Heci Kaçan addressed the crowd and expressed their sorrow over the deaths, the four workers were laid to rest.
KDP embargo leads to labor migration
Since the killing of Turkish intelligence officer Osman Köse on July 17, 2019, Southern Kurdistan’s ruling party KDP has kept the self-administered Maxmur refugee camp under a strict embargo. The residents of the refugee camp have been placed under general suspicion. Travel from Maxmur to areas controlled by the KDP is prohibited. For this reason, people from Maxmur are now even looking for work in Baghdad.
The embargo is taking its toll especially on women and children. Many women have suffered miscarriages due to the embargo which also denies the resident of Maxmur access to health. In August, two pregnant women lost their babies due to denial of access to hospital.
The camp has long been experiencing serious difficulties in vital issues and the problems grew even more following the Covid-19 pandemic. The Turkish state has increasingly targeted the camp after the embargo was put in place. The camp is officially under the protection of the United Nations which maintain their silence on the attacks.
The Maxmur Refugee Camp, home to over 13,000 Kurdish refugees, has endured many hardships, including military assaults. Turkish military airstrikes on the camp on 6 December 2017 and 13 December 2018 killed 8 camp residents and injured others, and a new wave of attacks and pressure on the Maxmur Camp began on 19 July.
RELATED NEWS:
