Hemin Hadya Sur: 49 Days of Torture and Resistance
ERBIL (Kurdistan24) - In the landscape of contemporary Kurdish politics, security operations often cast long shadows over the boundaries of civil liberties, judicial oversight, and institutional accountability. Nearly nine months after the dramatic internal security crisis that shook Sulaimani, the human cost of that political fracturing is beginning to emerge through firsthand accounts.
In an exclusive interview with Kurdistan24 presenter Kovan Ezzat on Monday, Hemin Hadya Sur, a prominent civilian detained in the sweeping security dragnet following the Aug. 22, 2025, Lalezar incident, delivered a detailed testimony of his subsequent 49-day imprisonment.
His narrative, marked by detailed allegations of systematic physical and psychological abuse, offers a harrowing glimpse into the specialized interrogation protocols deployed during internal partisan conflicts.
By framing his ordeal as a fundamental struggle for personal dignity against extrajudicial intimidation, Sur’s account links individual survival directly to the broader systemic tensions currently reshaping the Kurdistan Region’s political and security architecture.
The Night of the Arrest
According to the account provided by Hemin Hadya Sur, his entanglement with the security apparatus began on the night of Aug. 22, 2025, immediately following the outbreak of armed clashes between rival factions in Sulaimani.
Sur told Kurdistan24 that he was traveling from an evening gathering with Mela Bakhtiar, a veteran political figure who has publicly voiced dissent against the current leadership of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK), when his vehicle was targeted.
Sur recalled noting four unmarked surveillance vehicles monitoring his movements prior to his arrival at the Mergapan-Sulaimani checkpoint.
Upon reaching the checkpoint, Sur stated he was intercepted by an intelligence detachment working alongside localized security forces.
Despite operating as an unarmed civilian with no official affiliation to any political party, Sur was immediately taken into custody.
"In the beginning, I did not know what I was arrested for," Sur stated during the interview, noting that he was promptly transferred to an undisclosed interrogation facility.
It was only upon arrival at the lockup that investigators informed him he was being detained under Article 2 of the regional Counter-Terrorism Law, a charge Sur characterized as deeply shocking and structurally ungrounded given his lack of military or intelligence involvement.
“They Only Wanted the Phone Code”
The subsequent phase of his detention quickly narrowed from broad counter-terrorism accusations to a highly specific digital objective.
Sur alleged that from the opening hours of his interrogation, investigators demonstrated little interest in statutory legal procedures or formal depositions.
Instead, the entire operational focus of his captors centered on obtaining the encryption password to his personal mobile device.
Sur told Kurdistan24 that he made a deliberate decision from the first moment of pressure to deny investigators access to his phone.
He explained his refusal not as an admission of illicit activity, but as a principled stand to safeguard personal and political confidences, framing digital privacy as a modern extension of basic human rights.
According to his testimony, this refusal transformed his detention from a legal process into a direct war of attrition, as interrogators repeatedly warned him that his physical release was entirely contingent upon surrendering the passcode.
Allegations of Torture and Physical Abuse
What followed, according to Sur’s detailed testimony, was a sustained 49-day campaign of physical coercion designed to break his psychological and physical resolve.
In accounts preserved during the Kurdistan24 broadcast, Sur described being subjected to systematic beatings with industrial pipes and wooden implements, along with the targeted application of electric shocks to his head.
"I was tortured in a very brutal, inhumane way, far removed from the etiquette of standard treatment," Sur stated, detailing how interrogators intentionally dislocated his shoulder and inflicted severe trauma upon his limbs.
The physical consequences of the alleged abuse were severe.
Sur confirmed that rumors circulating on social media regarding his deteriorated health were largely accurate, clarifying that while local reports erroneously claimed both of his legs were fractured, he did sustain a severe fracture to one leg, alongside broken ribs and structural damage to his jaw and chin.
He further alleged that investigators deliberately targeted his chest and abdomen to maximize his suffering during periods of suspension.
Kicks to his torso severely aggravated a pre-existing hernia, inducing extensive internal bleeding and abdominal infections that ultimately required multiple emergency transfers to a local hospital for surgical intervention.
At one point, Sur recalled hearing guards receive explicit instructions to execute him, an eventuality he admitted hoping for at the time as a relief from the ongoing humiliation and physical pain.
Defense of Dignity and Personal Principles
Despite the severity of the alleged coercion, Sur maintained his refusal to comply with the demands of his interrogators throughout his 49 days of isolation.
Throughout the interview, he repeatedly emphasized that his resistance was guided by an adherence to personal principles, honor, and a refusal to capitulate to institutional oppression.
"They did what was incumbent upon them, according to their own principles and ethics," Sur reflected, contrasting the conduct of his interrogators with his own code of behavior. "I also did what was incumbent upon me to protect my own honor."
He stated that surviving the ordeal required a total consolidation of his willpower, transforming the preservation of his mobile phone password into a symbolic defense of individual autonomy against arbitrary state power.
Sur also utilized the Kurdistan24 platform to express deep gratitude to several fellow detainees, including senior PUK veterans like Siddiq Sofi Majid, who, despite their own confinement, provided critical physical assistance to help him wash, drink water, and survive the physical aftermath of his interrogation sessions.
The Lalezar Incident and Political Context
To fully comprehend the gravity of Sur's detention, his testimony must be analyzed against the backdrop of the political crisis that precipitated his arrest.
On Aug. 22, 2025, long-standing internal rivalries within the PUK culminated in an armed assault by security forces on the Lalezar Hotel in the Sarchenar neighborhood of Sulaimani.
The explicit objective of the multi-hour raid was the execution of an arrest warrant issued under Article 406 of the Iraqi Penal Code against Lahur Sheikh Jangi, the former co-leader of the PUK and current president of the "People's Front" (Berey Gel).
The ensuing clashes resulted in extensive casualties, the dimensions of which Sur claims remain heavily obscured by official narratives.
While formal security press releases minimized the losses, Sur alleged to Kurdistan24 that over 200 security personnel were wounded, with fatalities potentially reaching as high as 38 individuals.
He specifically cited the death of an operative known as "Sheikh Rekar" (Rekar Abdulrazaq), who allegedly maintained a prolonged defense before being neutralized by a combination of sniper fire and a targeted drone strike that left his remains severely burned.
Sur’s personal connection to the incident was immediate: his brother, Hawzhin, was embedded with Lahur Sheikh Jangi’s camp during the siege.
Upon learning of the operational collapse, Sur acted unilaterally to navigate the complex urban topography of Sarchenar Hill, successfully extracting his brother from the security cordon and securing him safe passage to Erbil.
Disputed Narratives Over Prison Conditions
Sur’s testimony stands in direct opposition to official oversight assessments published by regional administrative bodies during the immediate aftermath of the crisis.
He openly rejected public statements broadcast by human rights organizations and monitoring boards which claimed that individuals detained in connection with the Lalezar events were being maintained in accordance with international humanitarian standards and were free from physical abuse.
Recalling his time in the facility, Sur described watching a television broadcast from his cell in which an official assured the public that no detainees had been mistreated.
"At the exact moment that gentleman was stating on television that no one had been hurt, I could not even stand up straight because of the pain," Sur told Kurdistan24, adding that fellow inmates were actively feeding him water through a straw due to his injuries.
This discrepancy highlights a persistent challenge within the region's judicial landscape, where formal oversight mechanisms often struggle to accurately document conditions inside intelligence-run detention facilities during active political crackdowns.
Release Without Trial and Life After Detention
Following 49 days of unconstitutional isolation, Sur was abruptly released from custody without ever being presented before a judge or subjected to a formal trial.
He noted the irony of being held under a severe counter-terrorism mandate only to be dismissed without any judicial processing once the immediate political utility of his detention had concluded.
Prior to his exit, he was compelled to provide a signed and thumb-printed pledge promising not to disclose the specific operational details of his interrogation under threat of subsequent legal retaliation.
The truce between Sur and the security apparatus proved short-lived.
Following his release, Sur published an open letter on Facebook addressed to Lahur Sheikh Jangi titled "I Am Not Your Halfway Friend."
The public statement, which detailed his lingering political loyalties, prompted an immediate secondary summons from the PUK Asayish forces.
Sur stated that during this secondary confrontation, he informed officials that while they retained the physical power to re-arrest him, break his body, or end his life, they lacked the capacity to compromise his will.
Following this encounter, Sur permanently relocated his residence from Sulaimani to Erbil, joining a growing community of political dissidents seeking refuge within the Kurdistan Region's capital.
The account of Hemin Hadya Sur highlights how the Lalezar incident continues to influence political discourse and institutional trust across the Kurdistan Region.
His account underscores the ongoing vulnerabilities faced by civilians when political rivalries overflow standard institutional channels and enter the realm of armed security operations.
As the region navigates ongoing factional polarization, the unresolved questions surrounding the extrajudicial methods deployed during the Aug. 2025 crisis emphasize the critical need for robust human rights monitoring, independent judicial verification, and systemic security sector reform to ensure that personal dignity is protected from the volatile dynamics of partisan governance.
Text of the Interview:
Kurdistan24 Presenter: I will be with you in a special discussion; we heard a very different story about Lalezar, about August 22, but I have a much more different story now. I have a person with me in this special discussion, arrested during the wave of arrests after the Lalezar events. Why was he arrested? What was the reason? Where was he arrested? Where is he now? And what happened to him in prison? Before the discussion, he recounted some of it to me; truly it is a tragedy, so I would like you, the viewers and listeners, to also know what happened on August 22. My guest is Hemin Hadya Sur, one of the detainees of the wave of arrests after the Lalezar events. Kak Hemin, welcome.
Hemin Hadya Sur: Thank you very much.
Kurdistan24 Presenter: You were arrested after the Lalezar events. You weren't arrested that night; I think it was the following night you were arrested. Where were you arrested? And why did they arrest you? What was the reason?
Hemin Hadya Sur: From the beginning, I thank you, thank you for your hosting. On the night of August 22 (the night between 22nd and 23rd) after the arrest of Kak Lahur and his companions, I was arrested at the Mergapan-Sulaimani Asayish checkpoint. In the beginning, I did not know for what I was arrested; directly they took me to the place of investigation, which I don't want to name.
Kurdistan24 Presenter: Alright.
Hemin Hadya Sur: I asked on what basis did you arrest me? They said Article 2 of Terrorism! The word "Terrorism" for arresting someone that suddenly and that unexpectedly, it is a bit difficult to comprehend. Without asking any other questions about the mobile phone code, within a few hours I can say they brought me to the brink of death.
Kurdistan24 Presenter: Were you tortured?
Hemin Hadya Sur: In a very brutal, inhumane way, and far from the etiquette of treatment.
Kurdistan24 Presenter: Did you not know the reason yourself?
Hemin Hadya Sur: I did not know. No matter how much I talked and asked, nothing was said to me; they only wanted the mobile phone code.
Kurdistan24 Presenter: Why your mobile phone code?
Hemin Hadya Sur: If you forgive me, I don't want to go into the details of that subject of how they beat me and what they did, because until now the traces remain on my psyche, to tell you the truth.
Kurdistan24 Presenter: Alright.
Hemin Hadya Sur: But there is this to say; beating to the level of breaking bones, to the level that you are subjected to surgery again, going several times from the prison toward the hospital road. Breaking ribs, breaking the leg, jaw and chin, agonizing the body and agonizing the eyes, electric shocks and being moved right and left and these kinds of things are not easy, and as I tell you, the traces of the beatings remain on me.
Kurdistan24 Presenter: Meaning all of these happened to you? Up to breaking bones and these?
Hemin Hadya Sur: Yes. I believe on social media many things were discussed about my situation and my health status at that time; only one thing was extra, which was they said both his legs are broken, while one leg was broken. Otherwise, all those that were discussed are true. I don't want to go into the details of the subject, because before I was released, they prepared a handwritten pledge; I thumb-printed and signed it that I must not talk about the details otherwise I will face legal responsibility. Although it's true, this is a type of seizing of rights.
Kurdistan24 Presenter: Alright, what did they want from you there? Only the mobile code? Why, what was in your phone?
Hemin Hadya Sur: I don't know what they were after, truly. That question, they themselves must answer it.
Kurdistan24 Presenter: They didn't tell you what they wanted?
Hemin Hadya Sur: No. They said nothing like that as if saying what do you have in your phone and asking about it, no. But I was saying it myself. To not let them go on about the mobile code that much, I told them you arrested me on the path of Kak Mela Bakhtiar, I was his guest. Kak Mela Bakhtiar says on television clearly and openly I do not accept Bafel as my leader. Or it's because you appeared with Kak Fereydoun and Kak Salar and these; I said well you know their views too, they also spoke on television in their own way and expressed their dissatisfaction; this is my political orientation. Because I am not a military person, not an intelligence person, I cannot oppose and I haven't opposed.
Kurdistan24 Presenter: And in the end, did you not open (the code) for them?
Hemin Hadya Sur: I did not open it.
Kurdistan24 Presenter: Despite all the tortures? Physical torture and psychological torture, you didn't open it for them?
Hemin Hadya Sur: No.
Kurdistan24 Presenter: How many days did you stay in prison?
Hemin Hadya Sur: 49 days.
Kurdistan24 Presenter: How did you spend these 49 days? Was it beating and torture like that every day?
Hemin Hadya Sur: I didn't have enough left in me for them to beat me every day, because calculate for yourself, if they beat me I would have died.
Kurdistan24 Presenter: Meaning you had reached the brink of death?
Hemin Hadya Sur: I don't exaggerate when I say that. Those gentlemen who were there, to whom I am indebted, they helped me a lot so I could live. I want to seize this as an opportunity here, even if I don't go into the depth of the subject, to thank them; Kak Dilshad Najda with that white head, I mean I was embarrassed, I was ashamed of myself, he would come under my arm so I could go and perform ablution (wudu), Kak Rebaz the personal [guard], Kak Yadgar from the movements [department], Kak Siddiq Sofi Majid. The poor man has been wounded in war several times and is an old PUK Peshmerga and he was a prisoner there too; at that age, he was serving me. From here, I thank them.
Kurdistan24 Presenter: Alright. Two things are questions for me: who were they who arrested you? And why were you in Mela Bakhtiar's car?
Hemin Hadya Sur: On the evening of August 22, at 7:00 PM, Kak Bakhtiar called me; he wanted us to be together that evening. This is known; Kak Bakhtiar, Kak Fereydoun, Kak Salar, Kak Burhan, Kak Azad the Governor of Halabja, Mamosta Pishko. All of these are life-long friends and my father's comrades; since serving and respecting the father is an obligation, in my view, their friends are also an obligation.
Kurdistan24 Presenter: Meaning you had gone to visit them just as a friend?
Hemin Hadya Sur: Only that much, otherwise they do not work in the political sphere now.
Kurdistan24 Presenter: Alright, well who arrested you? Those cars that came?
Hemin Hadya Sur: Four cars were monitoring us there, their plates were not security agency plates. It was for something else; they were intelligence, yes. I read the plates; later they also said that a security agency arrested you. These went in front of me until we reached the Mergapan checkpoint.
Kurdistan24 Presenter: Can you say what it was? Because you say I saw the account and I saw the plate.
Hemin Hadya Sur: I don't want to provoke certain things, I mean. For myself, it might not be good later and it's not necessary; it is known there who carries out the arrest and who participated.
Kurdistan24 Presenter: Was it Anti-Terror or Commando?
Hemin Hadya Sur: I don't like you to pull me toward that subject that much; I have a bit of sensitivity now regarding the investigation, because they investigated me very harshly.
Kurdistan24 Presenter: Very well, I will also respect your situation.
Hemin Hadya Sur: I thank you. But inside the Mergapan checkpoint, I saw another force. Meaning there were two types of forces. Although they said it was one type of force, but I myself saw two types of forces.
Kurdistan24 Presenter: Meaning all of these had come to arrest you?
Hemin Hadya Sur: For an unarmed civilian person like me, yes!
Kurdistan24 Presenter: From the partisan side, to which party or side do you belong? Let me ask from the start, then later I'll go into it and say was one reason that, for example, were you People's Front or what were you that they arrested you?
Hemin Hadya Sur: In my life, I have never officially worked in any partisan sphere; not PUK, not People's Front, and not any other party.
Kurdistan24 Presenter: Alright. What was your torture with? You say it reached bone-breaking; with what were they hurting you, I mean torturing you? Can I know?
Hemin Hadya Sur: Again I tell you, I want you to respect my situation in that matter. But I tell you this much: what they used was pipes, electricity. Handcuffing for moving right and left, pressing on my shoulder so that my shoulder would pop out.
Kurdistan24 Presenter: This is besides the insults?
Hemin Hadya Sur: I mean they insulted me so much, the last time, they insulted me with three types of words. They used three phrases in three sentences, as a threat for the purpose of breaking me psychologically and forcing me to give them the mobile code. Believe me, after that they said straighten him up because this person is not the owner of such-and-such and such-and-such; if he were, he wouldn't accept all this insult and he would give us the code. I mean you have put me on the ground, tied me right and left, you have come on top of my back, and one was sitting in front of me, respectfully, far from your status, frequently he would bring his pair of shoes toward my mouth. In the back my leg was raised, I was being hit with wood on my leg, they hit my head with electricity, they were kicking me; they intentionally broke my ribs! So that when they took me for hanging my pain would be more. They intentionally broke my ribs.
Kurdistan24 Presenter: Alright.
Hemin Hadya Sur: Then at this time he says to me if you were the owner of such-and-such and such-and-such, you wouldn't accept this; look at this tyranny. After these they said straighten him up and kill him. Believe me when they said kill him, I thought they brought me news from paradise; I was hoping they would kill me. To be rescued from that insult and beating. I was just wishing they would fulfill their own promise, but they didn't fulfill it. You know I want to tell you one thing here and here let's bring an end to the subject of torture. I beg you. Let's not go over this subject that much.
Kurdistan24 Presenter: Alright.
Hemin Hadya Sur: What was upon them and they were tasked to implement, they did it.
Kurdistan24 Presenter: They didn't reach it.
Hemin Hadya Sur: They did it, everything that they were tasked with all their ability, they tried their best. I also implemented what was upon me to protect my honor.
Kurdistan24 Presenter: Well truly, Kak Hemin, was that mobile phone that important? Or was it just out of spite and hatred that you didn't open the password for them? Truly it was important to me.
Hemin Hadya Sur: I want to finish my speech. They did what was upon them. I also did what was upon me to protect my honor. But they with their principles and ethics. I also with my principles and ethics. With the first beating when I arrived there, they said get on your knees and I tell you once the mobile code, don't come or I'll hit you with a pistol. I don't know what hitting with a pistol means. But he said it exactly like that. From that minute I begged them not to insult me; beat me however you beat me but don't insult me. And don't curse at me. From that minute, all. All my pride, all my honor and dignity. In protecting that simple secret which is, I mean, the simplest human right today, your mobile code, I gathered myself in this so I wouldn't break. To be able to confront them and confront that injustice and oppression. I had nothing else, I was neither armed and nor did I have the ability even when ten people were attacking me. Although later they told me "Brother, there weren't ten people there." I said from under the mask I saw ten shoes. I believe they themselves understand what this speech means?
Kurdistan24 Presenter: Alright. There was something they said, supposedly something happened to the intestines and these, is this true?
Hemin Hadya Sur: During the beating, they put me on my back, and my hands, I was handcuffed right and left; it was very annoying. Because I requested water, I said I am thirsty. They said will you give us the code? They said, God bless your house, you exhausted us. When they gave me the water, they said the mobile code. I said I have forgotten, but I am full of water. Then they put me on my back, they came onto my stomach with kicks. They said now we must make you soil yourself. Out of the dread of not soiling myself and not becoming a joke. By God, [so] they wouldn't insult me more and laugh at me. I had a hernia myself, they came onto my stomach with kicks, until it reached the point that my hernia was so tormented that I was forced to have surgery because I suffered internal bleeding. Blood and pus had drained inside my abdomen and gathered in my reproductive system.
Kurdistan24 Presenter: Alhamdulillah (Praise be to God) you are safe now.
Hemin Hadya Sur: I am good now.
Kurdistan24 Presenter: You look good now.
Hemin Hadya Sur: Alhamdulillah, praise be to God.
Kurdistan24 Presenter: In which prison were you?
Hemin Hadya Sur: I would like not to repeat it more than that; respect my circumstances, I don't want to talk about the prison.
Kurdistan24 Presenter: That prison they talk about, was it not that one, was it somewhere else?
Hemin Hadya Sur: Forgive me. The matter is because I don't want to talk about the prison, because those [things] that pass and that I talk about, do not relate to the prison administration. Because there, the management staff and prison administration and the investigation staff are two different worlds.
Kurdistan24 Presenter: Well is what happened to you also true for the others?
Hemin Hadya Sur: They respected my situation a lot.
Kurdistan24 Presenter: You still don't know the reason?
Hemin Hadya Sur: Again I tell you, the question, its answer is with them. I saw nothing else but spite and hatred.
Kurdistan24 Presenter: Surely there is a reason, I want us to reach the reason. Alright. If I am not mistaken, a brother of yours was with Kak Lahur?
Hemin Hadya Sur: Yes, he was there.
Kurdistan24 Presenter: Your brother Hawzhin was with him?
Hemin Hadya Sur: Yes, my brother Hawzhin was there.
Kurdistan24 Presenter: Alright. On the night of the incident where were you?
Hemin Hadya Sur: In my own house.
Kurdistan24 Presenter: How did Hawzhin escape?
Hemin Hadya Sur: Hawzhin. It was apparent when Kak Lahur was arrested then I knew Hawzhin was there. I spoke with a close friend of Kak Lahur. He says to me "Haji," he said "Haji, Hawzhin is there." Believe me when he said Hawzhin is there, I mean a psychological state came over me; I didn't know to whom to turn or what to do. First thing I ran toward the television to see him. To see if among those who have fallen and been stripped and thrown on their faces, to see if he is there; I didn't see him, this was in the morning. I called Hawzhin, Hawzhin. He had no answer, until he answered me I think my soul departed and came back. May God let no one experience that, to feel that in the midst of that rain of fire his liver [loved one] is there. May God let no one experience it, I beg God Almighty and I pray to Him to bring that upon no one.
Kurdistan24 Presenter: Alright, what did you do?
Hemin Hadya Sur: First thing I went to Azadi Park.
Kurdistan24 Presenter: Alright.
Hemin Hadya Sur: So that until they release him I wouldn't be arrested myself. I didn't want to be without a friend. From there I contacted a friend of mine. I requested him to go there and give instructions to Hawzhin until he could escape one house, two houses from his trapped location. The topography of the houses of Sarchenar Hill is in a way that the roof of this one is with the courtyard of that one, the courtyard of that one with the roof of that one; you can easily steal yourself away.
Kurdistan24 Presenter: Alright.
Hemin Hadya Sur: One detachment of security forces was in front of the house where Hawzhin was. We instructed him in a way and he also escaped. I believe when I was released, after 50 days and then when I went out, only just recently they went to that place where Hawzhin was; they knew that Hawzhin and his friends were there.
Kurdistan24 Presenter: So you rescued Hawzhin?
Hemin Hadya Sur: With pride, yes. At 12:20 I picked him up from behind Qaiwan City. I took him to a place, I brought clothes and food for him, he washed himself and changed himself, later I sent him to the house of my aunts; I can say I am more of a man than many men in those matters.
Kurdistan24 Presenter: Alright. But many times I was hearing, the Human Rights Board was saying none of the Lalezar detainees and these have been tortured.
Hemin Hadya Sur: In prison, they do not have the ability to hide the facts. I will tell you one example. Although you don't respect my situation on that subject and frequently pull me back to the topic.
Kurdistan24 Presenter: I do respect it, but I want you to finalize it for me.
Hemin Hadya Sur: With an example. I saw a gentleman, I saw him giving a statement, he was saying "We have visited the prisons," I believe he also said the number, thirty and something people they have seen who haven't been tortured. At the time when that gentleman. At the time when that gentleman.
Kurdistan24 Presenter: Alright.
Hemin Hadya Sur: He gave that statement, he said no one has been hurt. I could not stand up straight. Even without exaggeration, I could not stand up straight. At the time when he gave that statement, exactly at that time when he gave that statement. I was looking at the television like this from between the pillows. Kak Siddiq Sofi Majid was holding a glass for me and I was drinking water with a straw. Exactly at that time when he said no one has been hurt.
Kurdistan24 Presenter: Alright. But he said according to our information. After how many days were you released?
Hemin Hadya Sur: 49 days.
Kurdistan24 Presenter: How were you released?
Hemin Hadya Sur: I don't know.
Kurdistan24 Presenter: How do you not know?
Hemin Hadya Sur: I don't know.
Kurdistan24 Presenter: They didn't tell you? They just said Kak Hemin you are released and that's it, without trial or such things?
Hemin Hadya Sur: It was exactly like that, I was eating lunch. Sir, I was there for 49 days, as I submit to you I went to the brink of death. From my entry into the prison until my exit, however many judges you have seen, I haven't seen that many. I was arrested under an article that doesn't even need the reasoning and analysis of a judge that I am innocent in it; I was exempted, I [gave] shelter... if, if Hawzhin is a criminal, if he is a criminal, at that time he didn't even have an arrest warrant because the matter was fresh. Hawzhin set off at 7:00 toward Erbil, I set off at 7:00 toward Mergapan. Until I returned on the road they arrested me. Well if an arrest warrant was issued for Hawzhin, whom did Hawzhin have that was incriminated, how were his witnesses taken; well Hawzhin at that time was not yet a suspect. He wasn't even wanted for Asayish.
Kurdistan24 Presenter: I don't know, where are you now?
Hemin Hadya Sur: I am in Erbil, sir.
Kurdistan24 Presenter: You are in Erbil now?
Hemin Hadya Sur: Yes.
Kurdistan24 Presenter: You have left Sulaimani and come to Erbil? After your release did you come straight to Erbil?
Hemin Hadya Sur: No. After my release, on the second day after my release I sent a letter to Kak Lahur. On my own account on Facebook; I believe it had an echo on social media. They called me at Asayish. I went to take back my belongings and mobile phones, but it was apparent they seized it as an opportunity. They said why have you done this? You. You gave a pledge that you must say nothing. I said I have two reasons. First, truly my heart burns for Kak Lahur, because Kak Lahur and his friends specifically himself. Compared to another suspect, it is extremely different. For another suspect, a judge sees the justice of the matter. He conducts a trial in the matter. This one, the one who is his adversary and considers him an enemy, he sees his trial.
Kurdistan24 Presenter: Well my producer has sent your letter exactly to me. It says, "Hemin Hadya Sur to Lahur Sheikh Jangi: I am not your halfway friend." Is this it?
Hemin Hadya Sur: Yes.
Kurdistan24 Presenter: It was this letter, right?
Hemin Hadya Sur: Yes, it's true. Second reason. Second reason. I told them, I said you arrested me for nearly 50 days. You broke my whole body. Well if I prove to you and to my friends, acquaintances, relatives and the people of my city too that you can arrest me, you can kill me, you can break my whole body once again, but you cannot break my will, you cannot defeat me.
Kurdistan24 Presenter: You told them that?
Hemin Hadya Sur: Yes. I took my son with me, so he would be a witness to my words. So that he also learns, so that he also learns to know how he must be an owner of a stance.
Kurdistan24 Presenter: Do you have information on how many people were killed inside Lalezar?
Hemin Hadya Sur: What they discuss is not like that.
Kurdistan24 Presenter: It's not?
Hemin Hadya Sur: No. Only among the PUK forces more were killed.
Kurdistan24 Presenter: How much information do you have?
Hemin Hadya Sur: Yes, but it's more. It's much more than what they discuss. Wounded is above 200 wounded.
Kurdistan24 Presenter: 200 wounded where? In both sides?
Hemin Hadya Sur: No, no, only in the PUK forces.
Kurdistan24 Presenter: 200 wounded only in PUK? Alright. Well, killed?
Hemin Hadya Sur: Killed are also many.
Kurdistan24 Presenter: How many?
Hemin Hadya Sur: I can say many, I only say that much.
Kurdistan24 Presenter: Can't you say the number?
Hemin Hadya Sur: I have heard numbers from several sides even from responsible persons; I have heard up to 38, now I don't know if it's true, because none of these were PUK, other people were also in it.
Kurdistan24 Presenter: Who were the other people?
Hemin Hadya Sur: People came from outside the Region for their assistance.
Kurdistan24 Presenter: They came from outside the Region?
Hemin Hadya Sur: Yes.
Kurdistan24 Presenter: Who were they, can you say their names?
Hemin Hadya Sur: Is it necessary to make myself responsible regarding saying those names?
Kurdistan24 Presenter: Well in Lalezar?
Hemin Hadya Sur: In Lalezar exactly I don't know.
Kurdistan24 Presenter: Exactly you don't know?
Hemin Hadya Sur: No.
Kurdistan24 Presenter: You don't have [data on] how many wounded and killed and those?
Hemin Hadya Sur: Wounded were not many, because shooters were not many, dear. That force... that force that you see, they defended against them.
Kurdistan24 Presenter: You told me a story that was a Dushka crew.
Hemin Hadya Sur: Yes. Sheikh Rekar?
Kurdistan24 Presenter: How was he, how was his story?
Hemin Hadya Sur: That subject has affected me a lot; this has been documented by video camera.
Kurdistan24 Presenter: Is it there?
Hemin Hadya Sur: Yes.
Kurdistan24 Presenter: Documented by video camera?
Hemin Hadya Sur: He changes three barrels of Dushka, he shoots with one hand, he changes the bullets with one hand. Well later he was hit by a sniper, then he was hit by a drone I believe until it caused the burning of this poor man and his martyrdom. Well you, a boy being this young and brave, shoots with one hand and changes bullets with one hand. Is this for you to embrace him or to kill him? It is a pity, unjustified... count yourself as a judge. That these are an extremely fertile and abundant and original root-seed that you should decorate your own forces with, well isn't it that you suppress them. One must not be against manliness, one must be with the manly person.
Kurdistan24 Presenter: Kak Hemin, thank you very much for that opportunity you gave us, so that we could have this discussion. I hope also to see you in good body and health; because what you discussed, truly you were rescued from death.
Hemin Hadya Sur: Thank you.
Kurdistan24 Presenter: Thanks to Hemin Hadya Sur, one of the detainees of the wave of arrests after the Lalezar incident who was with us, thank you very much. Hoping for the total release of all those who are currently in prison.
Hemin Hadya Sur: I hope so.