End of 21-year search; PKK member's family finds his grave from TV footage

According to KurdPress, Qahrem Gaziji's family, under the organizational name "Kendal Tetvan", identified their son's gravestone while watching footage of the "Martyr Binoş Cemetery" on the Noche TV program "Motorvan".

According to published information, Qahrem Gaziji lost his life in 2005 during a conflict in the town of Hazakh (Idil) in Şırnak province; but his family had no knowledge of his burial place for the past 21 years.The Martyr Binush Cemetery is located near the village of Basret in the Gabar Mountains, and a number of HPG and YJA-STAR fallen members are buried there. The cemetery was destroyed in an airstrike in 2015, and the area was closed to civilians from 2015 to 2026 after being declared a “military security zone.”

After identifying the tombstone on television images, Kheyret Gaziji, the hero’s mother, and Fadaei Gaziji, his brother, left Van without delay for Şırnak. They went to Basret village, accompanied by members of the Association for Solidarity and Solidarity with the Families of the Victims of the Cradle of Civilizations (MEBYA-DER), and visited Gaziji’s grave after 21 years.

Upon reaching the grave, Fadaei Gaziji kissed his brother’s gravestone and brushed away the dried grass on it. The family members stayed by the grave for a long time, singing a Kurdish song written for Gaziji.Fedai Gaziji, who said they had been searching for their brother’s grave for 21 years, said that they had set off from Van with their mother for Gabar after seeing the gravestone on Noche TV.

He added: “Kendall joined the movement years ago and lost his life; but he did not die for us. It is as if he left yesterday and died today; he is still alive in us.”

Gaziji, noting that the family’s access to the grave has ended their 21-year search, expressed hope that other families who have not known where their loved ones are buried for years will also be able to find their graves.

Referring to the family’s feelings upon reaching the grave, Fedai Gaziji said: “It was very difficult and moving to see this scene. I hope all families can see the body, grave or gravestone of their loved ones. We were lucky in that regard."Years have passed, but it seems like everything happened today."

She also referred to the "peace process and democratic society" and said her family wants an end to the conflict so that other mothers do not experience such suffering.

"No one else will lose their life and no other mother will cry. We, as a family, will also remember our martyrs and will not deviate from their path," Gaziji added.