It is with pain in our hearts that our party has to inform the public that the Kurdish people lost four of its brave Peshmergas in a clash with the Iranian Revolutionary Guard outside the city of Saghez in Iranian Kurdistan on Friday the 21st of August. My close friend Yousef Feghehi was one of these brave Peshmergas, the other three Peshmergas names are Hussein Mohammedi, Azad Barabi and Seifola Dniabi.

Last Thursday this group of Peshmergas was on a political mission when they clashed with a very large group of Revolutionary Guards members and large number of Jash (traitors) in the valley between the villages of Tomarqamish and Koltepe. The Peshmergas managed to fight of the regimes forces, killing and injuring an unknown number of Jash and Revolutionary Guard members.

The following morning, on Friday the 21st, the regime gathered forces from all of the sounding areas and attacked the Peshmergas yet again in the villages of Papshkhan and Qere, and after several hours of fighting three of the Peshmergas lost their lives and the fourth and last Peshmerga took his own life after that he had run out of bullets. During this clash at least 7 Revolutionary Guard members and Jash died and an unknown number was injured.

Hussein Mohammedi was born in 1974 in Faizolabegi outside of Saghez and he became Peshmerga in 1999, soon after he became a cadre in the Peshmerge forces. He leaves after him a child and his wife.

Azad Barabi was born in city of Saghez in 1976. He became an active member of our party in 2001 and he joined the Peshmerga forces in 2004.

Seifola Dniabi was born in 1988 in the village of Qeregoli outside of Saghez. He became an active member of our party in 2006 after which he was imprisoned for two years for affiliation with our party, upon his release he joined the Peshmerga forces in March of 2009.

Yousef Faghihi was born in 1980 in the city of Saghez and he became a Peshmerga in 1999. Yousef worked in our party’s secretariat and was a true inspiration to everyone that knew him. He had a firm belief in his peoples right to be free and rule them selves. During the last couple of years I spent several months at a time with him, he was a true friend and confidant. He was a true intellectual that didn’t have the possibility to study at University but he loved knowledge and he was in constant pursuit to learn more. He was self-thought in English and he worked as an English teacher and translator in one of our bases, and had also started studying Spanish. Yousef was also very interested in international relations and political theory.

The last time I meet Yousef was a couple of weeks ago, and he was talking about how the Kurdish people and our Party must rely on its own strengths and continue its struggle against the Islamic Republic with whatever resources we have, he never doubted that the Kurdish people would become free and he saw it as his duty to do whatever he could to help liberate the Kurdish people. I am proud and privileged to have counted him as my friend.

Yousef Faghihi, Hussein Mahmmodi, Azad Barabi and Seifola Dniabi will be mourned in all of Kurdistan and the Kurdish people will remember them all for their sacrifice and courage. Our thoughts and condolences go out to these brave men’s families!

In the words of Dr. Abdul Rahman Ghassmlou:

 “The best way to tribute our martyrs is to continue their struggle.”