Assyrians in Syria commemorate Simele Massacre victims

Assyrians in Tel Tamr commemorate Assyrian Martyr's Day

QAMISHLI, Syria (North Press) – The Assyrian Democratic Organization (ADO) issued a statement on Friday, the anniversary of the Simele Massacre and Assyrian Martyr’s Day. 

 

On August 7 every year, Assyrians commemorate the anniversary of the Simele Massacre and Assyrian Martyr’s Day within special occasions held by Assyrian parties and institutions.

 

In an exclusive statement to North Press, the head of Khabur Guards Council (an Autonomous Administration-allied Assyrian defense militia) in the town of Tel Tamr, Nabil Warda, said: “We used to commemorate this anniversary on August 7 and visit the graves of the martyrs and light candles for their souls, then return afterwards and hold a special celebration within the martyrs’ families center.”

 

“The Assyrian people were subjected to the Seyfo Massacres, in which more than half of the people lost their lives at the hands of the Ottoman Empire, followed by the Simele Massacre," she added.

 

In 1933, Iraqi army forces under the Commander Bakr Sidqi invaded the town of Simele and the surrounding Assyrianvillages, which numbered about 63 in the Nineveh Plain, in implementation of a decision by Rashid Ali al-Kilani’s government.

 

More than 5,000 people, most of whom were women, children, and the elderly, were killed during the massacres, according to the statement issued by ADO on Friday morning. 

 

“Our commemoration of the day is not to reopen wounds or to ruminate on the discourse of victimhood, but rather to honor the souls of the martyrs, the values of sacrifice and redemption, and to remind the world, especially the people of the region, that obliteration of the crimes, toleration, or justification under any pretext, especially those that are still practiced by terrorist regimes or groups, is considered legitimization and a factor for their continuation and repetition,” ADO said.

 

ADO is a political group that represents a large part of the Assyrian people in Syria, and it is a member of the National Coalition for Syrian Revolution and Opposition Forces. It also recently participated in establishing the Peace and Freedom Front with the Kurdish National Council in Syria (ENKS), Syria’s Tomorrow Movement and the Arab Council in the Jazira and the Euphrates.