Kobani exhibition portrays Kurdish resistance

KOBANI, Syrian Kurdistan (K24) – On Sunday, the Free Media Union (YRA) in Syrian Kurdistan (Rojava) held a photo exhibition in Kobani to mark the first anniversary of the city’s liberation from the Islamic State (Da'esh).

Hosted by Kobani Canton Administration and YRA, the event was held in Baqi Khado Hall.

Ahmad Muhammad, a YRA member, told K24 on Sunday, “Photographers from all parts of the Greater Kurdistan [in Syria, Turkey, Iraq, and Iran] participated in the exhibition.”

“The photographs depict the resistance and championship of the Kurdish fighters in defending the town. They also show the global attention Kobani received,” he added, noting that in near future an exhibition will be held showcasing foreign journalists’, photographers’, and artists’ work on the battle of Kobani.

“We [Exhibition Supervision Committee] chose 77 photos by Kurdish journalists who have been to Kobani since the liberation of the town,” said Dijla Ahmad, a YRA member.

“The gallery contains a variety of old and modern photos taken in 1980-2015. They display the history of Kobani and its resistance against Da’esh,” Ahmad said, pointing out that a number of photographers will be awarded at the end of the event.

The exhibition is one of the many cultural events that celebrates what the Democratic Autonomous Administration of Rojava designated as “Kobani Liberation Day.”  

The Free Media Union, an independent body of Rojava-based journalists and activists, was founded in 2012 by a group of independent Syrian Kurdish journalists. 

Reporting by Hisham Arafat

Editing by Ava Homa

(Redwan Bezar contributed to this report from Kobani) 

Selected photos from Kobani

Thousands around the world on social media have shared the image of the "Angel of Kobani" or "Rehana", a Kurdish fighter who has become a symbol of resistance against Da'esh. According to the stories, she's slain as many as 100 Da'esh fighters.

A groom holds his bride's hand as they pose near a mortar and damaged buildings before heading to their wedding ceremony in the town of Kobani, Syria October 23, 2015. This Kurdish couple is the first to have a civil marriage after the town was captured from Da'esh by Kurdish-led forces and it was declared part of the system of autonomous self government established by the Kurds. REUTERS/Rodi Said

A Kurdish refugee child cries as he and others wait inside a fenced refugee camp to pay their last respects to a Kurdish fighter killed during the battle for Kobani against Da'esh, in the border town of Suruc, Sanliurfa province November 7, 2014. REUTERS/Yannis Behrakis