“No one abandoned their cause or left their land”
Interview of Riseup4Rojava with Heval Mehmed, March 2026
Other languages: Kurdish – Spanish – German
At the beginning of 2026, the hegemonic forces once again gathered and attempted to crush the Rojava revolution through a large-scale attack. In Rojava, a general mobilization was declared to defend the achievements of the revolution, and the society of Rojava rose up. Especially youths from all parts of Kurdistan and from Europe answered the general mobilization and joined the defence of the revolution. Rojava once again wrote/continued its history of resistance, and through collective effort and sacrifice, the attacks were stopped. The people who came from outside to participate in the struggle gave the resistance a lot of strength, and one of the young people who came from Northern Kurdistan (Turkey) is Heval Mehmed. Heval Mehmed, can you introduce yourself and tell us why you came to Rojava?
My name is Mehmed and I am twenty-two years old. I was born and raised in Northern Kurdistan, where I learned about the struggle of the PKK and Abdullah Öcalan when I was 18. Later, with 22, I joined the revolution to participate in the general mobilization for Rojava. When I was in North Kurdistan, I was greatly influenced by Şehîd Rojger Hêlîn and Şehîd Asya Alî¹. I had wanted to join the revolution before, but due to some problems, I didn’t get the chance, so I didn’t make the decision to join until I was confident in myself. When the mobilization was announced, I was uneasy while seeing the videos from Rojava. So this time, I made a firm decision to join and came to Rojava (West Kurdistan). When you see the videos that show what is happening in Rojava while you are in the North of Kurdistan, the media makes it look like there is no life there. But when I experienced life in Rojava, I realized that there is a really unique life here, and the people of this land are self-confident and can do anything to protect their country. If the time comes, they can even give their lives for their country.
The strategy for defending Rojava is the strategy of people’s revolutionary war. You, as a young person, were also influenced and headed to Rojava. What does revolutionary people’s war mean to you?
I had never seen a people so strong before. When I came here, I realized that, no matter how much you try to put it into words, you cannot describe what you are witnessing here. The world has never seen anything like this. Rojava is showing its struggle and its resistance through revolutionary people’s war to the world and is continuously taking a very important place in history. For its defense, everyone, from children to the elderly, took night shifts in the street. Everyone wanted to do something for their country. Many martyrs shed their blood on this path, and the morale of the martyrs’ families always stayed strong and determined. No one abandoned their cause or left their land. When I went to the martyrs’ ceremony, I witnessed that among the friends who were martyred there were also Arab martyrs, and the people who were attending the commemoration were all one and united in their hearts. There is some propaganda that wants to frame this war as an Arab-Kurdish conflict, but that effort failed. Once again, we renewed our belief in a democratic nation and the brotherhood of peoples, and we know that if we unite against the enemy’s racist propaganda and attacks, we can build a socialist and equal society and live together.
How did you come to Rojava?
I crossed from North Kurdistan to Rojava and the journey was very difficult. I was also wounded, but when I arrived here, the people of Rojava welcomed me warmly, and I forgot all my wounds. In my mind there was only the struggle for freedom and the defense of the country. Before I came here from Northern Kurdistan, I thought there would be some differences in language and culture, but when I arrived, all my assumptions disappeared. I realized that the only borders between us are artificial and have been created to divide us.
With the resistance of the people inside and outside of Rojava a ceasefire agreement was finally reached. According to this agreement several institutions are being integrated into the state. Outside of Rojava there are people who fear that the Rojava revolution will slip out of our hands. What would you say to them?
We live like the people did before, with only the institutions and army being connected to the Syrian state. Our achievements will not be taken away. For the terms of the agreement we want the Syrian state to recognize the YPJ and our languages and to accept our schools and our institutions. We will not give up the gains we have made with the blood of thousands of martyrs. We always want peace and equality to prevail, for all peoples to live freely and never to live under oppression.
The Rojava revolution has faced a very difficult war, and there is still the possibility of attacks by jihadist gangs. In this situation, what does peace mean to you?
I can say that if Abdullah Öcalan had not stopped this war, a very bloody and painful genocide would have been committed against our people, and many innocent people would have died. It would have reached the point of turning into an Arab-Kurdish war and fulfilling the desires of the enemies who are backed by hegemonic and imperialist states. Therefore, we must protect our achievements through peace. To build a communal and free life after the latest phase of war we must strengthen our organization, organize the people, and raise everyone’s morale. That is why we cannot allow deceiving propaganda to create confusion among the people. Instead, we all must place our trust in Abdullah Öcalan. To ensure that this process continues successfully, we are obliged to struggle even harder. The possibility of attacks by gangs still exists, so the people are still on guard, taking nightshifts in the street. From the youth to the elderly, everyone is prepared for defense.
The Rojava revolution, as a women’s revolution, also stands against the patriarchy of the surrounding regimes and has become an example for the entire world. How do you see the struggle of the Rojava women’s movement in this process?
The enemy now fears the braids of women and tries to erase the achievements of the women’s revolution, but as apoists we will not allow the enemy to attack the women’s revolution because the freedom of women is our red line. Abdullah Öcalan has worked very hard on this issue. When the Arab cities were attacked and fell into enemy hands, we saw how the symbols of women’s freedom were again destroyed. In Raqqa the statue of a YPJ fighter was demolished, and the whole world saw how men took to the streets and chanted slogans against the revolution. At that moment it became clear that this was not a war between the Kurdish and Arab peoples but in fact a war imposed by the patriarchal system on the women’s revolution. The women’s movement responded with the strongest possible response, taking an unbelievably determined spirit against the attacks like the martyr Denîz Çiya, who fought to the end as a sniper in Aleppo, or the mothers of the front-line villages who prepared food for the fighters. We know that in the cities taken by HTS, women are living in a very difficult situation. Therefore, we must insist on women’s liberation and Jineology to combat patriarchy and, in this way, strengthen our struggle in this area and never be at ease.
Today we see that war is escalating all over the world. Women, youth, and oppressed peoples are being targeted. As in Rojava, where the majority of those who joined the revolution and defended their land were young people, we see that youth everywhere are rising up against this war. What is your call to all the youth?
We see that in every war, women, children, and young people suffer the most and are the most affected by it. All forms of war are a great danger to humanity and harm the entire world. We must insist on peace against war and always put humanity first. My call to all young people is to strive not to become advocates of war but instead struggle for peace. We have to come forward to oppose the hegemonic plans of the dominant powers. For the brotherhood and sisterhood of the peoples and world peace, we need to deepen our understanding and knowledge of socialism and the line of women’s freedom. Our goal always has to be based on these principles: We will never lose hope, we will always act with moral and faith in our cause, and we will always strive for a free life. I wish success to all socialist comrades and those who insist on peace. Revolutionary greetings and respect!
1) Şehîd is Kurdish for martyr. The two martyrs conducted a guerrilla action on the 23rd of October 2023 and attacked the weapon and drone factory TUSAŞ in Ankara. They killed dozens of soldiers and held their position more then one hour inside of the factory. Through their action they became symbols for urban guerrilla of the 21st century.