The Afrin Liberation Forces (HRE) have announced the death of their co-founder Karker Tolhildan (Ridvan Ulugana). The HRE commander was killed in an attack in the Afrin region on 10 June 2023. The command of the liberation forces, founded after the Turkish occupation of Afrin, expressed its condolences to Tolhildan’s family and the people.

The HRE said that Karker Tolhildan was one of the heroes of the Rojava revolution and added: "The revolution in Rojava has gone through intense and chaotic times. Each phase ushered in a new era and produced its own heroes and heroines. Afrin was already a target of attacks by jihadist gangs in the first years of the revolution. The region was besieged and was the scene of fierce fighting. The attacks culminated in the 2018 occupation. As Afrin's Liberation Forces, we continue the fight against the occupation without interruption."

As reported by the HRE, Karker Tolhildan went to Afrin in 2013 with a guerrilla group from the Amanos Mountains across the Turkish-Syrian border. He came from the Serhed region in North Kurdistan (Bakur) and defended Rojava for ten years against attacks by the Al-Nusra Front, ISIS and the Turkish state. The Amanos group played an important role both in defending the revolution and in the fight against ISIS. Its members took on command roles on various fronts and, with the liberation offensives in the ISIS-occupied areas, contributed to the revolution in Northern and Eastern Syria emerging from Rojava. Some of the group fell in Afrin, others in Kobanê and other areas.

When the Turkish state attacked Afrin in early 2018, Karker Tolhildan coordinated the resistance in the Yazidi village of Qestel Cindo in the Şera district. After the region was completely occupied, he was one of the founders of the HRE, the units that fight for the liberation of Afrin ever since. The HRE describe him as a commander who coordinated many effective actions against the Turkish occupiers and their jihadist proxies and was on the front lines with his fighters.

The HRE said: "Although he was injured several times, he did not give up his fight. He was a commander who knew war and life and who trained himself and his fighters ideologically and militarily 24 hours a day. Hevalê Karker thwarted many of the enemy's plans and was able to escape from seemingly hopeless situations several times."

The HRE added: "Wherever Commander Karker was, there was no pessimism and no hopelessness. His words and actions were consistent. With his attitude, courage and bravery, he took a place in the hearts of the people of Afrin. He was from Serhed, but he was just as much an Afrin resistance fighter. He left a great legacy to all our people and especially to the people of Rojava. His greatest goal was the liberation of Afrin, and we are indebted to him. As HRE, we will continue to fight until we can return to Afrin."