Kurdish journalists Cihan Bilgin and Nazım Daştan, who were killed in a Turkish drone attack in Rojava on 19 December, were laid to rest in Qamishlo after obstructions to the delivery of their bodies to Turkey where their families live.
Journalists Nazım Daştan and Cihan Bilgin were covering events in Northern and Eastern Syria when they were killed in a Turkish drone strike on 19 December 2024. Since that day, their families have tried to retrieve their bodies to bury them in their hometowns in Northern Kurdistan, but the AKP-MHP government denied permission for the repatriation of their remains.
Initially, it was announced that the bodies of the two journalists would be transferred from Qamishlo to the Nusaybin district of Mardin to be handed over to their families. When the families arrived at the Qamishlo border, they were informed that the bodies would not be handed over. The families were then told that the remains would be transferred from Rojava to Southern Kurdistan (Northern Iraq) via the Sêmalka Border Crossing.
In light of the information provided to them, a delegation, including the families of Daştan and Bilgin, took action to cross into Southern Kurdistan through the Habur Border Crossing in Silopi district of Şırnak.
When their passage was obstructed by Turkish authorities, the delegation began a sit-in in protest. Despite two days of demonstrations, the AKP-MHP government refused to allow the passage of the delegation to retrieve the bodies. Given the situation, the families decided that Nazım Daştan and Cihan Bilgin should be laid to rest in Qamishlo.
The two journalists were laid to rest at the Şehîd Delîl Saroxan Cemetery of Martyrs in Qamishlo on Saturday.
The funeral ceremony was attended by thousands of people, including the families of the journalists.
