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Several different massacres in the Zilan region

Until now, it was called the “Zilan Valley Massacre”, but after investigation, it turned out that the truth of the massacre was different. Turkish soldiers have killed Kurds in many areas of the Zilan Valley. As mentioned earlier, they committed mass killings in 10 different places, but the rate was much higher in six places including:

1- Ada Khaybe.

2- Malke area.

3- Nawala Fade.

4- Nawala Babo.

5- Nawala Khune (Nawala Kushtiyan).

6- Ashiran tribe.

Because of the anger of genocide that so much innocent Kurdish blood has been shed on the territory of these areas, it has been 90 years, plants still do not grow in the areas.

1- Massacre in Ada Khaybe

After the state soldiers gathered the villagers of 50 villages, each group was taken to a place where they were shot. One of these places was called Ada Khaybe.

Ada Khaybe/ Grava Khaybe is located between two branches of the Zilan River. Ada Khaybe is also known as "Nawala Kushtiyan". There are dozens of Nawals in Kurdistan known as Nawal Kushtian.

"Malke region" is located in front of the Khaniyan Valley River. Nawala Fade is also near the village of "Komir". Khaniyan Valley and Hajideriyan Valley are located near Kunduk village. Ashiran Valley is near Hassan Avdal village.

Thousands of villagers, women and children, old and young, men and women, were gathered by the Turkish soldiers. The soldiers surrounded them with a weapon called Akhmakinayan.

The state army officer went to a high hill some distance from the area of Ada Khaybe and looked around. Nuri Kaya from Hassan Avdal village went to the officer and said:

"You said you would take the villagers to Ardish, but you have brought them here and have not said a word for an hour. The villagers like to know what you are saying to them.

The officer told Nuri to go away quickly. We don't have anything to do with you.

Nuri returned to the villagers and told them, "Well, they will kill us all.

Nuri, the village chief, was the uncle of Mihe. Mihe told his son-in-law Ahmad:

“After Nuri told the villagers, we knew we would all be killed. The place where we were gathered was a pit. The soldiers surrounded us. The place where the soldiers were stationed was high, and none of us could have escaped. After a while the officer whistled and the soldiers took their weapons towards us and started shooting. During the shooting, I saw many people's brains going several meters into the air. People screamed and ran away. Our fate was no longer on earth, only with God in heaven... After four or five minutes, the sound of gunfire stopped. We believed that they would shoot us all. Many of us were killed, but there were still many alive and wounded among us. Some of alive people started running.

The soldiers shot them too, and I saw many of them wounded and falling away from us. I wasn’t hit, but I couldn’t give up my family and run away. I saw a wounded woman shaking me and saying, “My son, run away. You are from a great family, run away... I did what she told me and ran away. The soldiers shot me too. One bullet hit my arm and one hit my leg, but I didn't fall because the bullets didn't hit my bones. I ran into a forest.

Near Ada Khaybe, there was a large forest and the trees were filled with bushes among them. I saw that my uncle Nuri's son, Avdi, was there. “Did you survive too?” he said.

I said: Yes; I came, but I was injured by two bullets.

We saw the officer whistle again and the soldiers shoot at the crowd again. We watched the people and soldiers among the trees. The soldiers were shooting and shooting... The screams of the people were as loud as the sound of the weapons. I was crying and looking at the people and the soldiers. We saw the cruelty, but God forbid such a tragedy happens to anyone.

Then we saw that the sound of the weapons stopped, and there was no sound from the people. This time, on the officer's order, the soldiers went down the hill and went over the bodies one by one. They even shot the wounded, killing them. No one was left in the area after the soldiers finished their state work. The officer whistled again, and the soldiers came out of the dead and returned to their places.

But there were still people among the dead who had not died. Some of them, who could get up, fled, and some of them reached the bank of the river in the Zilan Valley and fell into the water.

Our cousin Rashid Mohammed Ajam was injured by two bullets, but he did not die and got up and ran into the trees where we were.

It was late in the evening, and the sun was about to set. We looked around, there were no soldiers in those areas. We got down from the trees and went to see if anyone was still alive, with the intention that if there were any injured people, we would bring them into the trees, and there might be a chance to save their lives. We saw three soldiers coming from there. We turned back and went back into the trees to see what they were doing.

Part of the book "Ten Massacres in Three Tribes of Zilan", Zainal Abedin Znar, Kurmanji Kurdish, Farhangi Kurdi Publishing House, Sweden/ Stockholm, 2023

To be continued...