ANF correspondents talked with the HPG commander Serhat Jiyan Patnos about the guerrilla war in the Northern Kurdistan region of Botan last year. "Botan is the heart of the Kurdish revolution. It is an honour for us to fight as guerrillas in a place like Botan", says the commander of the People's Defense Forces.

Commenting on the military operations in the Botan region last year, Patnos said: "As always, the enemy is aiming to destroy the guerrillas in Botan. The fascist Turkish Minister of the Interior had already declared for 2018 that the guerrillas in the Botan region would be destroyed, vowing that “whoever can be killed will be killed, the others will die of hunger and cold”. Of course, this did not happen, on the contrary, the Kurdistan guerrilla havr entered the year 2019 with great determination under the most difficult conditions. The AKP-MHP alliance understood their failure and declared that they had not wiped us out, but at least, as far as actions are concerned, they neutralised us. The Turkish military carried out large-scale operations under various names throughout Botan. Especially in Besta, these operations were carried out without interruption. No casualties were inflicted on the guerrilla, on the contrary, the Turkish army was hit hard again and again.

Turkish state barricades itself against guerrillas

Regarding the morale of the guerrillas in Botan, Patnos says: "In the place where the organization and party building took place, the excitement and passion of the guerrillas is great. The guerrillas have inflicted heavy blows on the enemy with their morale and determination. The bases of the Turkish military were turned into fortresses and especially underground bunker systems were strengthened. They do all this out of fear of the guerrilla.

Operations represent an opportunity for guerrillas

In the media, they pretend to achieve something with their operations, but the guerrillas have an advantage especially in military operations. For the guerrillas, operations are an opportunity to meet the enemy. If we look at the areas of Besta, Gabar and Cudi and the whole of Botan, the Turkish military has been dealt heavy blows in its operations since spring.

As a result, the Turkish military was forced to change its tactics. Now mostly secret operations are carried out. These blows of the guerrilla were an important answer to the propaganda of the fascist leader of Turkey and his accomplices that they had wiped out the guerrilla. They make anti-propaganda to intimidate the population. But everybody should know that the guerrilla is determined to win.

The technology of the Turkish state failed

The guerrillas carried out a restructuring project and were thus able to deal the enemy heavy blows in every region. As a result, the Turkish state's technology and intelligence, in which the army relies so much, could be rendered inoperative.

Just as the initiative of August 15, 1984 marks the beginning of the uprising of the Kurdish people and their guerrilla, the year 2020 will be a year of victory, especially because of the experiences made in Botan, we are determined to do so".

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