ROJAVA – Serêkaniyê, where Aryel Botan was martyred, is a city in the Hesêkê Canton of Northern and Eastern Syria and is one of the places where the first battle took place on the Rojava Revolution Field. With the collapse of the Bashar Assad regime in Syria with the Arab Spring in 2011, the region became one of the occupied areas of groups such as Al-Nusra and Ceyşul Hür, the extensions of Al-Qaeda. In 2012-2013, the People’s Defense Units (YPG) fought hard to get these groups out, and as a result of intense clashes, these groups were completely expelled from the city.
Two years later, ISIS gangs tried to occupy the city and intense clashes took place and the gangs were once again wasted. In order to seize the city, where al-Qaeda and ISIS failed in the invasion, the Turkish army was driven into the field this time, and invasion attacks against the city began on October 9, 2019. The city, which is currently under the occupation of the Turkish state, is constantly on the agenda with violations. One of those who were martyred in the fight against ISIS in the city in 2015 is People’s Defense Units (YPG) fighter Aryel Botan.
FROM TEHRAN TO KANDIL THERE TO ROJAVA
Mohammed Hussein Karimi. Aryel Botan as his name in the struggle. He was born on January 19, 1990 in Tehran, the capital of Iran. Like many internationals, Aryel Botan sought to do something after hearing about the inhumane atrocities of ISIS in Iraq and Syria. In this direction, Martyr Aryel went to Bashure Kurdistan in 2015 and joined the guerrilla in the Kandil region. A short time later, he went to Rojavayê Kurdistan to join the fight against ISIS.
Martyr Aryel, who quickly got used to the region and embarked on the struggle since the first day he arrived, eventually became involved in the liberation campaign launched in Serêkaniyê against DAESH. Martyr Aryel Botan speaks in a video taken before he was martyred: “I joined the People’s Defense Units (YPG) against the tyranny of ISIS by exploiting religion. This tyranny destroyed religion and threatened the whole world. Here, under the leadership of the YPG, a freer and equal life and a struggle against racism are also being fought. I wish all people to reach this free and peaceful world one day…
THE WORD CONTINUOUSLY USED
Another phrase that Martyr Aryel Botan uses constantly is “We say that God created humans as free beings. We learned that this is sacred.
Martyr Aryel Botan died on May 9, 2015 while fighting against ISIS gangs on the fronts of resistance in Til Boxa village near Serêkaniyê.
TOMORROW: International martyrs of the Rojava Revolution – X: Reece Harding (Bagok Serhed)
