Biography
Eyşê was a child of 17 years. She worked to support her family financially, going from her mother’s place to the sheep pen. Eyşê was a high school student, but in order to help her mother went along with two young women named Hewa and Ezîme to the place where her family takes care of sheep. Eyşê, as well as the other two women, were targetted by Turkish warplanes and were killed.
Place
Maxmur refugee camp, Northern Iraq
Date
15 April 2020
Description
On the 15th April 2020, at 1pm in the afternoon, unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) of the occupying Turkish state targetted and martyred three young women by the names of Hewa, Ezîme û Eyşê who were looking after sheep. All three women traveled to and from the sheep pen every day in order to support their households. Hewa and Ezîme were both killed on the spot, but Eyşê was injured and was found by the people of the camp who came out shouting in order to find her. Because ambulance services were restricted to leave the camp, she was treated at the camp’s hospital with various procedures, but the doctors were not able to save her and she lost her life. Their bodies were badly burned as a result of the airstrikes. Their deaths, as always, were reported to the United Nations and Iraqi officials have been following the situation, but until today accountability for these crimes against humanity has not been achieved.
Current legal situation
We can say that from the beginning of our lives as refugees until today the Turkish state has been attacking us. Our camp is a camp of political refugees and these illegal attacks against humanity are taking place under the observation of the United Nations. Up to now, the camp has been bombed 5 times by warplanes of the Turkish state, and in these airstrikes we have suffered many deaths and losses. Likewise, it has been nearly four years that nearly every day unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) circle over the camp. Without a doubt these UAVs have a big psychological impact on our people, especially the children are negatively affected by the aircraft. In our camp there are almost 4,000 students and every day that the UAV drones circle over the camp, these children experience the negative psychological affect. It is women and children who experience the damage and loss of these most serious risks. Because as a result of these airstrikes, the sisters, brothers and mothers of these children are killed. It also has a negative impact on our economic situation and quality of life, the camp community is a working community and according to the communal system that exists in our camp, in normal circumstances we can continue with our lives and help each other. But because of the risks of the airstrikes from the Turkish state and the daily circling of Turkish UAV drones and the risks from Islamic state gangs we cannot engage in shepherding or agriculture. We cannot even move around the camp easily because of the aircraft flying over. Because as we are reminded every day, we are facing the risk of airstrikes from Turkish drones. Because of this we cannot work in the surroundings of the camp. The presence of UAV drones routinely circle above the camp daily has a significant negative impact on our society physically, psychologically and economically.
