HPG commander Ulaş Dersim was martyred in a Turkish air strike in southern Kurdistan. He was in the guerrilla ranks for 24 years and fought for a long time in the mountains of his birthplace, Dersim.
According to a statement published by the press center of the People's Defense Forces (HPG) on Wednesday, guerrilla commander Ulaş Dersim was martyred in a Turkish airstrike in Medya Defense Zones on June 9, 2021.
HPG expressed their condolences to the family, the people of Dersim and the Kurdish people and stated that the enemy will be held accountable.
Ulaş Dersim was born in Dersim in 1978. His family was poor and he grew up in an environment influenced by socialist thoughts. His childhood was marked by the aftermath of the Dersim genocide of 1937/38 and the stories of thousands of nameless resistance fighters who did not bow to the colonialists. At the same time, the Kurdish liberation movement was developing in Dersim. For Ulaş Dersim, life within the state system was not possible. While studying engineering, he left the university and joined the guerrilla ranks in Dersim in 1997.
During this period, the guerrillas had few resources at their disposal and came under fierce attack. Ulaş Dersim fought in the mountains of Dersim until 2002 and gained great experience in the practice of guerrilla warfare in North Kurdistan. As an experienced commander, he went to the Medya Defense Zones in southern Kurdistan in 2002. There he stayed in Xinere, Qandil, Zap and Zagros and returned to Dersim in 2006. Until 2014, he assumed various duties in positions of responsibility and was a member of the Dersim area command. HPG described him as a combative, courageous and persistent personality who did not recognize any difficulties as an obstacle to the struggle. In 2014, he returned to the Medya Defense Zones, participated in educational programs, and successfully assumed duties in the area command.
"Heval Ulaş, in his 24 years of guerrilla life, has taken on many different tasks from the struggle of an Apoist militant to the command level. He has participated humbly and selflessly in practice in all areas and with his life and struggle he is one of the unforgettable commanders in our history of struggle. For the people of Dersim, the youth, the people of Kurdistan and us as his companions, he is a role model and we will carry his battle flag to victory. His ideas of a free, democratic and socialist life for the Kurdish people and all oppressed peoples will be realized," HPG said.
