On the seventh anniversary of the massacre in Suruç, the Executive Council of the KCK (Kurdistan Communities Union) remembers the victims and calls for their struggle to continue. In the Suruç attack on 20 July 2015, 33 mainly young people were killed by an ISIS assassin, and 104 others were injured, some seriously. The attack occurred when 300 young people gathered at the Amara Cultural Centre at the call of the Federation of Socialist Youth Associations (SGDF) to hold a press conference before leaving for Kobanê. The planned trip to northern Syria was supposed to be an act of solidarity. The young people wanted to bring children's toys and humanitarian supplies to the ISIS-destroyed city.

The KCK statement paying tribute to the victims includes the following:

They wanted to contribute to the reconstruction of Kobanê

"The martyrs of Suruç stand for the solidarity and common struggle of the socialist and revolutionary movement of Turkey with the freedom struggle of Kurdistan. These young people had revolutionary thoughts and feelings of solidarity and were not involved in any action or movement that would constitute a criminal offence according to any law. They wanted to contribute to the reconstruction of Kobanê with revolutionary thoughts and solidarity with the Kurdish people and were in Suruç for this purpose. However, the fascist AKP/MHP government, in its hysteria to avenge the defeat in Kobanê, committed a massacre under the cover of ISIS.

Turkish government's desire for revenge

The fall of Kobanê was a strategic plan of the AKP/MHP to liquidate the revolution that had just taken place in Rojava and to create a new state in Syria under the rule of religious-fascist gangs. This plan failed due to the resistance of Kobanê. The defeat of ISIS triggered anger and a desire for revenge in the Turkish government, which was directed against all those "who stood by the Kurdish people in the victory against ISIS and contributed to the liberation of Kobanê.

Campaign of destruction against the construction of democratic modernity

The massacre in Suruç was the beginning of a campaign of extermination aimed at genocide. After the defeat of ISIS in Kobanê had thwarted the plans of the AKP/MHP, the success of the joint political movement of the Kurdish people and the revolutionary democratic parts of Turkey in the elections on 7 June 2015 ended the rule of the government and the most important steps for a new process in Turkey were initiated. With the end to AKP/MHP rule, the obstacle to a democratic solution to the Kurdish question and the realisation of a democratic change in Turkey would also have been removed. The solution to the Kurdish question and the democratisation of Turkey would have led to the democratisation of the Middle East, and thus to a new process based on fraternity, equality and the common will of the peoples in the region. In fact, the reconstruction of Kobanê meant the construction of the process of democratic modernity, and the members of the socialist and revolutionary youth movement of Turkey had come to Suruç for this purpose.

The downward trend of the AKP/MHP continues nevertheless

At that time, many attacks against the political opposition were carried out under the guise of ISIS. On 5 June 2015, an attack with several fatalities targeted an election campaign rally of the HDP. On 25 June, ISIS carried out a massacre in Kobanê in which hundreds of people were brutally murdered. Finally, on 20 July, there was a massacre in Suruç. The bloodiest attack in Turkey's history took place on 10 October 2015 at a peace rally in Ankara, killing over a hundred people. Subsequently, Kurdish towns were attacked, hundreds of young and old people, women and children were killed, over ten towns were razed to the ground. All the attacks took part as part of the extermination plan decided by the National Security Council on 30 October 2014. The downward trend of the fascist AKP/MHP government has nevertheless continued and today it is on the verge of collapse.

The role of the youth movement

The young people who died in the Suruç massacre followed in the footsteps of Deniz Gezmiş, Mahir Çayan, Ibrahim Kaypakkaya and Hikmet Kıvılcımlı, the pioneers of Turkey's socialist and revolutionary movement. These pioneers believed that the liberation of the Turkish people would be based on the common struggle with the Kurdish people and the brotherhood of peoples, and they fought for it.

Today, it is the responsibility of the youth to keep alive the memory of the Turkish socialist and revolutionary young people who died in Suruç and to continue their struggle. The brotherhood of the peoples, the common struggle of the peoples of Kurdistan and Turkey and the development of the revolution in Kurdistan and the revolution in Turkey is only possible under the leadership of the youth. Abdullah Öcalan clarified the spirit and character of the revolution in Kurdistan by saying: 'We started young, we will succeed young'. The youth everywhere must organise themselves with this revolutionary spirit and identity and strengthen the struggle even more. The university youth have a special role to play in this and must take the lead in educating, raising awareness and organizing young people.”