YJA-Star guerrilla, Zîlan Botan, has been fighting against the Turkish aggressors in the Medya Defense Areas since the beginning of the Turkish invasion on 23 April 2021. She talked about the successful resistance under the leadership of YJA-Star and emphasizes the importance of the population support.

"The enemy has achieved nothing"

"On 23 April the enemy launched an invasion operation against our territories," explains Zîlan Botan. “The enemy wants to get all parts of Zagros under their control, but so far they have not been able to achieve this goal. The resistance of the comrades is incredibly significant. The enemy is constantly spreading lies and false reports of success, but in reality they have achieved nothing. Every night they change troops bringing new ones with Sikorsky helicopters. This reveals the fear of the enemy. Our comrades have been fighting for days with great determination in the war tunnels and also in the field.

The conditions of the guerrillas and the terrain of Kurdistan are clear. There is a lot of resistance. The enemies cannot penetrate the war tunnels, nor can they settle anywhere. They can't move that easily, so they rely heavily on technology. But that doesn't work either. It is a very large operation, but the guerrillas are resisting a lot. Everyone should know that nobody can get to the Zagros Mountains that easily. Only those who live here can."

The attacks are not only targeting the guerrillas, but the whole people

Guerrilla Zîlan Botan added: “In Zap, the friends Melsa, Rustem and Bawer led a tremendous resistance and waged an incredible war against the enemy. We take an example from the resistance of these friends. At the same time, the resistance has spread everywhere. The friends from the YJA-Star play a decisive role in this resistance. Many of the actions in which the YJA-Star participated have been successful.

"Protest valuable, but insufficient"

Zagros is an area in the region of Hakkari. Guerrilla Botan said: “The enemy wants to establish itself in these areas and the guerrillas are resisting. Our comrades fall in this battle every day. That is why the people of Hakkari, Şemdinli, Yüksekova and Çukurca in particular must stand up and protest. In the past, people have always risen where the enemy is attacking. The enemy wants to silence the protest of the population. Our people shouldn't be afraid. Our people's protest against the invasion is valuable but insufficient. These attacks are directed not only against the guerrillas, but against the entire Kurdish people. Resistance needs to be developed at all levels. As HPG and YJA Star guerrillas, we will resist until the end."