SANANDAJ, Iran – Seated beside photographs of his son, killed in 2015 fighting the Islamic State (ISIS) in Kobani, Mam Tofiq bitterly surmises his feelings. “Shamelessly, Trump stabbed us in the back.”
Heartbroken, the elderly parents of YPG volunteer Hama Amir Amiri feel as though they have lost their son all over again, as the city he died to defend comes under renewed attack, this time by Turkey and its Syrian proxies.
Mam Tofiq and Daya Zainab live in a small town in Iranian Kurdistan named Degolan with a population of fewer than 30,000 residents, situated some 50 kilometers east of Sanandaj.
Since 2014, when ISIS attacked northern Syria – also known as Rojava – young men from this town in northwest Iran – also known as Rojhelat – have traveled to fight the jihadists alongside their fellow Kurds.
Many were killed, while others refused to come home as Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan threatened to attack.
Erdogan made good on those threats last week, launching a relentless air and artillery campaign against the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) after his US counterpart Donald Trump withdrew US troops from the border, greenlighting Ankara’s offensive.
Thousands of kilometers away, the shockwaves of that offensive are keenly felt by residents of this small Rojhelati town. On Monday, I went to see Mam Tofiq and Daya Zainab at their home.
Hama was their youngest son. He was 30 when he was killed in October 2015, just 11 months after joining the Kurdish People’s Protection Units (YPG), the backbone of the SDF. He had changed him name to Hawre Laylakh.
“My son loved everyone in life. He never thought of harming even a single sparrow. He went to Western Kurdistan [Rojava] to defend the poor people there,” his mother tells me, a white scarf covering her head like other mothers of fallen YPG fighters. She sits beside a large portrait of her son.
Drawing deeply on a cigarette, Mam Tofiq, 68, describes his son’s sudden decision to leave for Rojava.
“My son was very much attached to and paying attention to the struggle of the Kurdish nation in Rojava,” he says in a low voice. “He used to work at the public food market in Tehran. He would sometimes come back and help me in farming. He had never hurt anyone in life.”
“Shortly after he set up a shop in Degolan, one day he handed the key of the shop to his neighbor and migrated. We found out much later that he had joined the YPG. And when he was martyred, one day I received a phone call informing me that my son had been injured. I suspected they would not call me if he was merely injured and I was sure something was wrong,” he said
Sadly, Mam Tofiq’s instincts were correct. Hama’s body was taken to the Kurdistan Region of Iraq and “laid to rest in Qandil by his friends”.
“I am proud of my son because he fought against the Satan Daesh and for humanity,” Mam Tofiq said, using the Arabic acronym for ISIS.
‘Erdogan is the father of Daesh’
Glued to their television screen over recent days, Hama’s parents say they are praying the Kurdish forces to prevail over the invaders.
“Kurds fought a war of attrition against Daesh and in this struggle we lost 11,000 men and women to free the world,” Mam Tofiq said. Yet Kurds have been betrayed time and again by so-called friends and allies.
“World powers turned their back on Qazi Muhammed and now, shamelessly, Trump is stabbing us in the back,” he said, labeling the US a “blood sucker”.
Qazi Muhammad declared the short-lived Mahabad Republic on January 22, 1946. It won the support of Kurds from all four parts of Kurdistan, including the late Mustafa Barzani, who brought thousands of fighters from Iraqi Kurdistan to defend the fledgling republic.
It was left vulnerable, however, when the Soviet Union struck a deal with its British rivals in Persia and withdrew its troops, clearing the way for Tehran to crush the rebellion. Qazi refused to flee and fought to the last.
“All the Shervans [Kurdish fighters in Rojava] are our sons and Erdogan is the father of Daesh,” Mam Tofiq said. “He used Daesh against Kurds. He is now dropping bombs on our oppressed nation, women and children.”
“As the family of a martyr, we are proud of our sons. I know of families who have two to three sons and daughters fighting against Turkey in Rojava. They are all proud of what they are they doing.”
Although distraught, Daya Zainab is also proud of her boy, and warns the world must stand up to “the fascist Erdogan”.
“If I am allowed, at the age of 58, I am ready to go and fight Turkey,” she said.
Crowds of people from around Rojhelat had turned out to welcome them home after they returned from burying their son, grateful for the family’s sacrifice.
“I am truly proud. He made us proud,” she said.
Translated by Zhelwan Z. Wali and edited by Robert Edwards
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