On the occasion of the “Week of Solidarity with Syrian People,” the Platform for Solidarity with the Syrian People (SHDP), which was established to support the ongoing struggle for freedom of Syrians against al-Assad’s regime, staged a demonstration in Fatih in support of Syrian people. IHH Humanitarian Relief Foundation is one of the members of the SHDP. Thousands of friends of Syria went down to Fevzipaşa Street following the jumma prayer.
The demonstrators carried banners which read, “Muslims, don’t sleep, stand behind your brothers,” “Killer Assad to give an accounting of his actions,” “Syrian people are not alone,” “Thousands of greetings to Syrian intifada,” “Killer Assad, get out of Syria,” “Long live global intifada, “Greetings to Hama, go on with the resistance,” “Blood of martyrs will kill tyrants.” They also chanted slogans against the Syrian regime.
The program in Fatih began with Quran recitation and prayers. Later, martyrs who went to Syria from Turkey and killed there were commemorated. A Syrian girl, named Meryem, recited an Arabic poem. In addition, speeches were delivered in protest of al-Assad and Baath regime. The speeches were frequently interrupted with takbirs. Figures from the Syrian opposition and Syrian religious scholars also delivered speeches at the event.
Syrian writer Ramazan Kayan, who addressed the crowd, talked about the ongoing violence in Syria. He said all the Muslims should extend a helping hand to Syrian people while he criticized the Turkish government for failing to give sufficient support to Syrians. Kayan also said Syrian people will dash hopes of those who want to create a sectarian conflict in the country.
“We are here in order to greet and stand behind Syrian resistance and Syria’s legendary uprising. Esteemed friends of Syria, we need to explain to the entire humanity why we are here today. We are here in order to show that Syrian people are not alone in their just resistance and we are at their side till the very end. Friends of Syria, we are here to stand behind mothers who lost 72,000 of their sons and daughters over the past two years for the sake of justice and freedom. We are here also to apologize to our sons and daughters who have been subjected to torture in Syria. We are here to apologize to our sons and daughters who feel the cold in tents in border towns in these winter months,” Kayan said.
Stressing that they never have a goal other than greeting and supporting Syrian people who have been carrying on an honorable resistance for more than two years, Kayan added: “We believe that those youths in Syria who dare to lose their lives will foil the traps of imperialists, Zionists and all the other ignorant people. We believe in them and we trust them. Our support for Syria should not only be performing funeral prayers for them. Our mission should be making imperialists to lose their aspirations from our lands. I want to appeal to Ankara from here, your duty is not only establishing tent cities and providing food to the hungry people. At a time when those who are at the side of tyrants do their best, we criticize Ankara for not doing sufficiently and ask it to take immediate action for Syria.”
IHH deputy chairman Osman Atalay who also delivered a speech at the event said Syrian people who took to the streets with the hope of leading a dignified life expect support and prayers from everyone.
“More than 72,000 sisters and brothers have lost their lives with the bombs and bullets from al-Assad regime. Millions of Syrians have been displaced. There are more than 250,000 missing and jailed people in Syria. More than three million houses have been uninhabitable. There are more than 130,000 injured people and massacres of al-Assad still continue. The world is still silent in the wake of this tyranny,” Atalay said.
