Zeynep Kınacı (1972–1996), codenamed Zilan, was a member of the

Kurdistan Workers' Party The Kurdistan Workers' Party, or the PKK, isDespite the PKK's 12th Congress announcing plans for total organisational dissolution, the PKK has not yet been dissolved de facto or de jure. a Kurds, Kurdish militant political organization and armed ...

(PKK) known for having committed its first suicide attack. The way she carried it out has influenced women's role within the PKK.

Biography

Kinaci was born in a village in

Malatya province Malatya Province (; ) is a Provinces of Turkey, province and Metropolitan municipalities in Turkey, metropolitan municipality of Turkey. Its area is 12,259 km2, and its population is 812,580 (2022). It is part of a larger mountainous area. Th ...

in 1972 to a family of the Mamureki tribe. She studied social sciences at the Inönü University in

Malatya Malatya (; ; Syriac language, Syriac ܡܠܝܛܝܢܐ Malīṭīná; ; Ancient Greek: Μελιτηνή) is a city in the Eastern Anatolia region of Turkey and the capital of Malatya Province. The city has been a human settlement for thousands of y ...

and worked at the state hospital as a

X-ray An X-ray (also known in many languages as Röntgen radiation) is a form of high-energy electromagnetic radiation with a wavelength shorter than those of ultraviolet rays and longer than those of gamma rays. Roughly, X-rays have a wavelength ran ...

technician. In 1995 she joined the PKK.

The suicide attack

On the 30 June 1996, Kınacı triggered the explosives near Turkish soldiers in Tunceli who were singing the

İstiklal Marşı "" (; ) is the national anthem of both the Republic of Turkey and the Northern Cyprus, Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus. It was officially adopted by the TBMM, Grand National Assembly on 12 March 1921—two-and-a-half years before the 29 Octob ...

, killing around ten soldiers while wounding over thirty. Before the attack, she wrote three letters in which she explained her reasons for the suicide attack, one directed to the leadership of the PKK, one to the Women Freedom Fighters and another one to the revolutionary people of

Kurdistan Kurdistan (, ; ), or Greater Kurdistan, is a roughly defined geo- cultural region in West Asia wherein the Kurds form a prominent majority population and the Kurdish culture, languages, and national identity have historically been based. G ...

. According to her letters, she saw the action executed through her love for humans and life.Käser, Isabel, ed. (2021) p.42 She saw it as her way to liberate herself from the oppression the Kurds had to go through by Turkey. The

suicide attack A suicide attack (also known by a wide variety of other names, see below) is a deliberate attack in which the perpetrators knowingly sacrifice their own lives as part of the attack. These attacks are a form of murder–suicide that is ofte ...

came in response to a failed assassination attempt on

Abdullah Öcalan Abdullah Öcalan ( ; ; born 4 April 1948 or 1949), also known as Apo (short for Abdullah in Turkish; Kurdish for "uncle"), is a founding member of the militant Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK). Öcalan was based in Syria from 1979 to 1998. He ...

on the 6 May 1996.

Recognition

Her death had a deep impact on the women's role in the PKK. By the PKK, she was exemplified as the new

Ishtar Inanna is the List of Mesopotamian deities, ancient Mesopotamian goddess of war, love, and fertility. She is also associated with political power, divine law, sensuality, and procreation. Originally worshipped in Sumer, she was known by the Akk ...

and the female equivalent of a modern Kawa, who personified in Mazlum Dogan, committed suicide on

Newroz Newroz () is the Kurdish celebration of Nowruz; the arrival of spring and new year in Kurdish culture. The lighting of the fires at the beginning of the evening of March 20 is the main symbol of Newroz among the Kurds. In Zoroastrianism, fire i ...

1982 in prison in Diyarbakir. Today her

nom de guerre A ''nom de guerre'' (, 'war name') is a pseudonym chosen by someone to use when they are involved in a particular activity, especially fighting in a war. In Ancien régime, ''ancien régime'' Kingdom of France, France it would be adopted by each n ...

Zîlan, but also Mazlum are popular names in the provinces of Diyarbakir and

Mardin Mardin (; ; romanized: ''Mārdīn''; ; ) is a city and seat of the Artuklu District of Mardin Province in Turkey. It is known for the Artuqids, Artuqid architecture of its old city, and for its strategic location on a rocky hill near the Tigris ...

. In her memory,

Gurbetelli Ersöz Gurbetelli Ersöz (1965, Palu, Elazığ– 8 October 1997, South Kurdistan) was a chemist, journalist and later also member of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK). Biography Gurbetelli was born in Palu, Elazığ, and studied chemistry at the Univ ...

, the former Editor in Chief of

Özgür Gündem ''Özgür Gündem'' (Turkish language, Turkish for "Free Agenda") was an Istanbul-based daily Turkish language newspaper, mainly read by Kurds. Launched in May 1992, the newspaper was known for its extensive reporting on the Kurdish-Turkish confl ...

adopted as nom de guerre Zeynep after she joined the PKK. In Germany an annual Zilan festival is organized in her memory. She was an inspiration of Mahal Baloch, a Baloch female suicide bomber who also adopted the alias Zilan.

Personal life

Kinaci was married and her husband was in Turkish captivity when she committed suicide.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kınacı, Zeynep 1972 births 1996 deaths Female suicide bombers Members of the Kurdistan Workers' Party People from Malatya Province Turkish Kurdish women