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

Kurdistan Workers' Party The Kurdistan Workers' Party or PKK is a Kurdish militant political organization and armed guerrilla movement, which historically operated throughout Kurdistan, but is now primarily based in the mountainous Kurdish-majority regions of south ...

(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 ( tr, ; ku, Parezgêha Meletîyê) is a province of Turkey. It is part of a larger mountainous area. The capital of the province is Malatya. The area of Malatya province is 12,313 km². Malatya Province had a population of ...

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

Malatya Malatya ( hy, Մալաթիա, translit=Malat'ya; Syro-Aramaic ܡܠܝܛܝܢܐ Malīṭīná; ku, Meletî; Ancient Greek: Μελιτηνή) is a large city in the Eastern Anatolia region of Turkey and the capital of Malatya Province. The city ha ...

and worked at the state hospital as a

X-ray An X-ray, or, much less commonly, X-radiation, is a penetrating form of high-energy electromagnetic radiation. Most X-rays have a wavelength ranging from 10 picometers to 10 nanometers, corresponding to frequencies in the range 30&nb ...

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 "İstiklal Marsi " (; ) is the national anthem of both Turkey and Northern Cyprus. It was officially adopted by TBMM, Grand National Assembly on 12 March 1921—two-and-a-half years before the 29 October 1923 establishment of the nation—both as ...

, 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 ( ku, کوردستان ,Kurdistan ; lit. "land of the Kurds") or Greater Kurdistan is a roughly defined geo-cultural territory in Western Asia wherein the Kurds form a prominent majority population and the Kurdish culture, Kurdish la ...

. 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 is any violent Strike (attack), attack, usually entailing the attacker detonating an explosive, where the attacker has suicide, accepted their own death as a direct result of the attacking method used. Suicide attacks have oc ...

came in response to a failed assassination attempt on

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

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, also sux, 𒀭𒊩𒌆𒀭𒈾, nin-an-na, label=none is an ancient Mesopotamian goddess of love, war, and fertility. She is also associated with beauty, sex, divine justice, and political power. She was originally worshiped in S ...

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

Newroz Newroz or Nawroz ( ku, نەورۆز, 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 21 is the main symbol of Newroz among the ...

1982 in prison in Diyarbakir. Today her

nom de guerre A pseudonym (; ) or alias () is a fictitious name that a person or group assumes for a particular purpose, which differs from their original or true name (orthonym). This also differs from a new name that entirely or legally replaces an individua ...

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

Mardin Mardin ( ku, Mêrdîn; ar, ماردين; syr, ܡܪܕܝܢ, Merdīn; hy, Մարդին) is a city in southeastern Turkey. The capital of Mardin Province, it is known for the Artuqid architecture of its old city, and for its strategic location on ...

. 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 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 conflict, and was reg ...

adopted as nom the guerre Zeynep after she joined the PKK. In Germany an annual Zilan festival is organized in her memory.{{Cite web , title=Zîlan-Frauenfestival in Leverkusen , url=https://www.ozgurpolitika.com/haberi-zilan-frauenfestival-in-leverkusen-127905 , access-date=2022-04-04 , website=YeniOzgurPolitika.com , language=tr

Personal life

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

References

1972 births 1996 deaths People from Malatya Province Members of the Kurdistan Workers' Party Female suicide bombers Suicide bombers