The Central Headquarters Command of the Free Women’s Troops (YJA-Star) announced that guerrilla commander Aryana Baran has succumbed to cancer in the Medya Defense Zones.

YJA-Star wrote that commander Aryana Baran, born and raised in the Hilvan district, Urfa province, witnessed the effects of colonialist policies in the region as a child and "prepared her heart and mind for a relentless struggle against them." In particular, to seek revenge for the oppression of Kurdish women that has lasted for thousands of years, she sought ways to join the liberation movement.

After Abdullah Öcalan's deportation to Turkey in February 1999, she went to Russia, where she joined the liberation movement. She worked for a while within the Yazidi population living in Russia and later went to the Kurdish mountains. At her own suggestion, she joined the self-sacrificing units and eventually became a commander. She fought in the mountains of Kurdistan for 21 years.

Aryana Baran went to Botan in 2004 and took an active part in the June 1 offensive. "Traces of her work and struggle can be found everywhere in Botan and Mardin," said the YJA-Star. From there, she went back to Southern Kurdistan and attended a training course at the Şehîd-Zîlan Academy. In 2014, she went to Northern Kurdistan one more time to lead the Mardin area command together with Botan Hakkari and Soro Amed. In 2015/2016, she took part in the urban war in Derik as a leading commander. "Under her command, it has been proven that free Kurdish women are a nightmare for the fascist system," wrote the YJA Star.

"After returning to Southern Kurdistan, she always wanted to go back to the North to realize the hopes and dreams of the revolution. For this, she participated in an ideological training of Sakine Cansiz course at the beginning of 2017. She shared her experiences in the revolutionary people's war and dealt with the shortcomings," the YJA-Star statement continued. With the strength she gained in the process, she was active in the work of the HPG and YJA-Star until her death.

YJA-Star expressed their condolences to the family of Aryana Baran, all the martyrs’ families, the people of Hilvan and the entire people of Kurdistan and vowed to continue the struggle of the martyrs and to realize their dreams.