Turkish border guards kill son before father’s eyes in NE Syria’s
Syrian-Turkish border in the vicinity of Ain Diwar in the far northeast Syria – North Press
QAMISHLI, Syria (North Press) – In the Kurdish village of Ain Diwar in the countryside of the city of Qamishli, far northeast Syria, Hussein Abdullah recalls memories of the day his son killed by Turkish border guards.
He can still remember every detail of the incident. Less than 500 meters from the Turkish border, Abdullah looks at the spot where his son was killed.
After minutes of contemplating, the old man told his grandchildren to return home. He cannot endure the situation where he lost his beloved son.
“I saw him injured while he was appealing and calling me to rescue him. I screamed ‘my son is not a terrorist, do not kill him,’ but he was killed by a Turkish drone,” the father said.
Mustafa died, leaving behind four children. His sister and aunt were injured by Turkish bullets as they sought to approach him.
Two days prior, Abdullah could not dissuade his son not to go to their field which is bordering Turkey, as farmers have been repeatedly targeted by Turkish border guards. However, poverty pushed Mustafa to take the risk. He went along with two friends.
Hours later, bullets resounded in the village. For few hours, the general perception was that Turkish border guards were firing at people seeking to cross into Turkey. Mustafa contacted his family telling them he was injured, and his two friends had been shot dead.
However, targeting locals on the Syrian side of the border are common occurrences by the Turkish border guards. Some farmers refrain from cultivating their lands while others take the risk.
As if Mustafa knew he was going to pass away, he told his father to cater for his children. He was moaning on the ground.
The family was agitated looking for a way to retrieve their son. They were fully aware that any bid to retrieve their son would be met with fire from Turkish border guards. At the time, Abdullah advised his son to pretend as if he died because “if they knew he was alive, they would have killed him.”
At dawn of the next day, the family along villagers went to relieve Mustafa and retrieve the bodies of his two friends. As they approached the man and the two bodies, the border guards opened fire on them, injuring Mustafa’s sister and aunt. The rest fled away.
Only Abdulla stayed there. It was the most difficult situation he faced. “They threatened me that they would kill me if I did not step back.”
The man appealed to the Turkish border guards not to kill his son. However, “A Turkish drone appeared in the sky looking for Mustafa and his two friends. It opened fire on them to make sure they were killed.”
Pausing for a couple of seconds Abdullah added, “I could not rescue him, he was appealing to me but to no avail.”
Since that date, 2017, the grandfather has spent most of his time with his grandchildren assuming the role of a father. He is the sole breadwinner of the family. “If necessary, I will die for them.”
It was a very heart-wrenching idea for the grandfather to convey to the children that their father was not going to return home. “As time passed, they began to accept what death actually is.”
While children play close to the house, Abdullah looks at the spot where his son was killed. “The spot of the event never leaves my memory.”
The man consoles himself saying, “My son is not the sole victim, Turkey killed hundreds of Kurdish youth on this border.”