The Iraqi Turkmen community on Friday held a remembrance ceremony for the Altunköprü Massacre on its 34th anniversary with a ceremony in Kirkuk.
Iraqi Turkmen Front (ITF) Chairperson Hasan Turan, Turkmen party leaders, representatives of civil society organizations and officials attended the ceremony held at the Martyrs' Memorial in the town of Altunköprü.
On March 28, 1991, more than 100 Turkmens lost their lives in the massacre carried out by the Iraqi army in the town of Altunköprü, located between Kirkuk and Irbil.
The ceremony began with a moment of silence, and then the Quran was recited for the victims. Families prayed at the graves of their lost loved ones.
“Even though decades have passed, we will not forget and will not let others forget those who were martyred in the struggle for existence and for the homeland,” ITF President Turan said as he addressed the ceremony.
Turan argued that the “only reason for what happened in the small town exactly 34 years ago was to eliminate the Turkmen presence in Iraq.”
“We will defend the principle for which they sacrificed their lives,” he said.
Turan stated that despite dozens of actions against the Turkmen presence by successive governments in Iraq in the last century, the community continues to stand strong and will continue their struggle for existence.
Hashim Muhtar, president of the Iraqi Turkmen Political Prisoners and Martyrs' Families Association, said that despite the 34 years that have passed, the memory of the massacre remains fresh in his mind.
"The Turkmen martyrs left us all the legacy of the struggle to maintain the Turkmen presence in this country." Muhtar continued as follows:
"While Turkmens continued their struggle for existence, they never stood against their state. I remember that the day the massacre took place 34 years ago coincided with the month of Ramadan, which we are living today. More than 100 innocent Turkmens were killed without mercy or compassion, and during the month of Ramadan."
After the Gulf War, soldiers loyal to Iraq's deposed leader Saddam Hussein massacred more than 100 Turkmens, including children and the elderly, in the town of Altunköprü, 44 kilometers (some 27 miles) north of Kirkuk, on March 28, 1991.
Turkmens hold ceremonies every year on March 28 at the martyrs' cemetery in Altunköprü town to commemorate those who lost their lives in the massacre.
