In a statement on Friday, the People's Defence Centre (HSM) Headquarters Command said: “The freedom struggle that leader Öcalan launched on a Newroz day has been concretized as the PKK and completed a half-century-long process. Öcalan's march is a Newroz march, and the PKK he founded is a Newroz Party. The Newroz fire sparked by the contemporary Kawa, Mazlum Doğan, in the Amed Dungeon turned into a fire of resistance in the mountains and plains of Kurdistan and heralded the glorious return of our people subjected to genocide and brought to the brink of annihilation to the stage of history. We commemorate all our martyrs with respect and gratitude in the persons of our Great Newroz Martyrs, Mazlum, Zekiye, Rahşan, Ronahî, Berîvan and Sema, who are the creators of our Newroz tradition by lighting the Newroz fire with their bodies.

The statement continued: “Our historic freedom march, which was launched with the first meeting Öcalan organized in Çubuk, Ankara in 1973, leaves 50 years behind on the 2023 Newroz. The historic struggle that he started based on a superhuman will has gone beyond Kurdistan and become the hope of freedom for the oppressed peoples, women and youth. Our people, who have been subjected to the most brutal torture in history through assimilation, denial, destruction and genocide attacks, have been resurrected by our Party, the PKK, and have become the People of Newroz that defy persecution. Our Kurdistan Freedom Struggle, which has been carried out by tens of thousands of brave Kurdish youths shedding their blood, has proved to be the Newroz Party by embracing the line of victory without hesitation. The Kurdistan Freedom Guerrilla, which fought in the spirit of Newroz resistance throughout the year 2022, resisting the inhuman attacks of the colonialist Turkish army that disregards all rules of war and morality, has bravely defended every inch of our country's lands. The idea of free women, formulated by Öcalan as "Jin, Jiyan, Azadî" (Woman, Life, Freedom) has enabled women, who were imprisoned in their houses and whose will was ignored, to find their true essence and seek freedom thanks to the Newroz fire.

KURDISTAN FREEDOM GUERILLA WELCOMES NEWROZ

The Kurdistan Freedom Guerrilla, which completed the year 2022 with a struggle based on self-sacrifice, welcomes a new Newroz in the spring of 2023 with determination to protect the legacy of our immortal martyrs based on the Öcalan’s ideology. Our forces, which have put up historic resistance against the invaders in North Kurdistan and Medya Defence Zones through their professional teams on the ground, in battle tunnels and positions, will continue to defend the sacred lands of Kurdistan by turning them into resistance strongholds that will not allow an occupation and will put an end to the reign of the cruel Dehaks.

The Kurdistan Freedom Guerrilla, focused on victory by embracing the struggle line of our immortal martyrs in the Apoist self-sacrificing spirit, will continue its struggle with determination until the Free Leadership and Free Kurdistan are achieved. Our comrades Sara, Rûken, Rojbin, Yaşar, Şevger, Arjin, Roza, Numan, Raperîn and Delîl Zagros, the immortal commanders of our great resistance in the last year, stoke up the Newroz fire of our struggle and demonstrated once again the invincibility of the Apoist will.

We celebrate Newroz Day once again and wish all the forces carrying out the struggle for freedom great success in the new Newroz year.”