On 25 June 2015, militiamen of the terrorist organisation ISIS entered Kobanê from Turkey and carried out a brutal massacre against the civilian population. Elî Xelê survived the massacre, injured, shot in both legs. The attack tore open a deep wound in people's hearts, Xelê recalls seven years later:  

"We celebrated the liberation of Sirîn, but then we saw that the ISIS gangs had come to the town. Mihemed Hecî was by my side, they shot at us. He fell, and I was wounded in the legs. My neighbour Ehmed wanted to take me to the hospital, but we were surrounded by the gangs. Later, we discovered a path and were able to save ourselves. The Turkish state and its mercenaries wanted to wipe out the population of Kobanê with this massacre. The attack on the people of Kobanê was directed against the entire Kurdish people.”

Wehîde Şêx Nebî lost her father and son in the massacre. She reports about that day: "My father had come to us to collect offerings for Ramadan. He was tired and wanted to rest a little. We heard gunshots, they were getting louder and louder. I asked my father what was going on outside. He guessed that they were shots of joy at a celebration for the liberation of the city. Then a big explosion was heard. My father and husband went outside. I took my baby in my arms and followed them. We did not understand what was happening. My husband's brother and his wife were killed. The gangs later took us out of the house too and shot at us. My father and my son were killed."

Background: A massacre directed by Turkey

In Rojava, the victims of the Kobanê massacre are being commemorated today. 252 civilians, including 64 women and 35 children, died in the massacre on 25 June 2015 - perpetrated by ISIS with backing from Ankara.

The massacre occurred after the successful defence of the city against ISIS attacks. On 26 January 2015, the YPG/YPJ declared Kobanê liberated. The city was destroyed, but reconstruction began. Ten days after the YPG and YPJ liberated Girê Spî (Tal Abyad) on 15 June of the same year and advanced on Raqqa, the self-proclaimed "capital of the caliphate", ISIS jihadists disguised in YPG uniforms entered Kobanê from two sides. 

60 ISIS terrorists from Turkey had passed the Mürşitpınar border crossing, which was completely closed at the time, with the knowledge of Turkish soldiers - in DShK-mounted vehicles. Another ISIS platoon came through Jarablus. The attack began at dawn with the explosion of a truck bomb. Afterwards, the jihadists descended on Kobanê. The jihadists went from house to house, killing old people, men, women and children. People reported that the killers had specially shaved off their beards in order to be able to enter the city undetected.

Nevertheless, the People's and Women's Defense Units (YPG/YPJ) were able to repel the attack. What remained were 252 dead civilians, the youngest only a few years old, and two dozen fallen fighters. They were buried in a special memorial cemetery in the city.