Faced with an invasion attempt by the Turkish state and the ISIS/Al Nusra derivatives under them, Afrin has intense clashes along the border line from the Jindirese district to the southwest of the city to the borders of Shiye, Raco, Bilbile and Shara districts. One step behind the front lines, the people of Afrin continue their resistance. Despitef attacks by fighter jets, mortars and artilleries, the district’s villagers are not leaving their lands.

ANF visited the Shera and Sherawa villages where the citizens state that the Turkish state is attempting to take their lands away from them and stress that they will never abandon their lands to Turkey. Despite intense attacks, the villagers don’t leave their villages and continue their resistance, saying: “This is our land, we were born here and we will die here.”

“WE STAND AGAINST THE INVASION”

21 years old Bangîn Mihemed from Shera’s Sinka village says he is studying medicine, he returned to the village as the attacks started and is ready to take on any responsibility necessary to defend his lands. Mihemed says: “We will never abandon our villages. How can we? The Turkish state has declared war on us. We are not trying to take their lands, they are here to invade ours. We will all take up arms and stand against this invasion.”

“THIS LAND IS OURS”

52 years old Derwêş Çawîş from the same village stresses that the land belongs to them and adds: “The Turkish state is attacking our canton with all kinds of heavy weapons and fighter jets. And we insist that we will live on these lands. These are our lands. We will never abandon our lands. This is ours. This country is ours. Nobody can come and push us out of our lands. We are the children of these lands, this is the land of our ancestors.”

“WE WILL WIN THIS WAR”

88 years old Cuma Ebdî Cuma from Kastel, an ancient Ezidi village in the Afrin region, says the Turkish state is there for an invasion and that they harbor great enmity against Kurds: “We will win this war. I am an Ezidi citizen. The Turkish state has come to invade our lands. I am from the Kastel village. We are Ezidis and Muslims living together. But the Turkish state has its eye on our lands. The Turkish state harbors enmity against all Kurdish people. It’s not just one family, or one person. Like the Ottomans, they want to rule here. But we will prevail. Allah willing, we will win.”

“THESE LANDS ARE OUR HONOR”

Samî Temir says: “This land is ours, and we live on our own land. We won’t abandon our lands, even if the whole world would stand against us. This is our homeland. We have no other. We will never abandon this place to the Turkish state. The whole world should know that the Turkish state has declared war on a people who want to live on their own lands in peace. I will resist for these lands until my last breath. Our land is our honor, we will resist until the end to defend it.”

“AFRIN IS NO SMALL CAUSE”

A woman named Fatma Ibrahim jumps at our microphone as soon as she sees it: “Afrin is no small cause. We will never abandon Afrin to the Turkish state. Everybody must know their place. The Turkish state has a certain line. Now they are crossing that line, and attempting to invade our Afrin. As long as we have our YPG and YPJ, as long as we have one small child alive on this earth, we will not give one handful of this land. Erdoğan can take nothing from here. We will not let him have one bit of these lands.”