Statement by our Central Executive Board:
The attacks carried out by the AKP government and the Salafist armed groups under its patronage against North and East Syria, targeting the Kurdish people, have entered a new phase. These assaults, involving indiscriminate drone bombings of civilian settlements, have resulted in the deaths of numerous civilians. Among the victims, journalists Nazım Daştan and Cihan Bilgin were brutally killed.
Journalists who exposed the lies of psychological and special warfare, countered the AKP regime's black propaganda driven by its troll army, and revealed the truth have been directly targeted. The killings of Daştan and Bilgin, who reported on events in the Kobanî region, reflect the regime's fear and anger toward their journalistic work. These abhorrent attacks constitute a simultaneous war against the Kurdish people, their achievements, and the exposure of the truth.
The journalists targeted had been informing the public about developments in the region for many years. Both had previously endured numerous attacks. In 2014, while covering ISIS assaults and the resistance against them from the Suruç side of the border, these journalists tirelessly worked on the frontlines and faced judicial pressure. During that time, they published well-documented reports exposing Turkey's support for and collaboration with ISIS.
These actions are crimes against humanity and violations of universal law. We strongly condemn and denounce the assassination of these journalists, who, through their reporting on events in the Qaraqozak and Tishrin Dam regions, disrupted government propaganda.
We urge all segments of society concerned with crimes against humanity to raise their voices. The AKP government and its officials must immediately provide explanations for these actions and put an end to such criminal conduct.
DEM Party Central Executive Board
20 December 2024