Haukur Hilmarsson (22 July 1986 – 24 February 2018) was an Icelandic

political activist A political movement is a collective attempt by a group of people to change government policy or social values. Political movements are usually in opposition to an element of the status quo, and are often associated with a certain ideology. Some ...

. He played a crucial role in initiating a movement for the rights of refugees in Iceland. He rose to prominence during the

2009 Icelandic financial crisis protests The 2009–2011 Icelandic financial crisis protests, also referred to as the Kitchenware, Kitchen Implement or Pots and Pans Revolution ( Icelandic: ''Búsáhaldabyltingin''), occurred in the wake of the Icelandic financial crisis. There had be ...

after climbing to the roof of the house of the

Icelandic parliament The Alþingi (''general meeting'' in Icelandic, , anglicised as ' or ') is the supreme national parliament of Iceland. It is one of the oldest surviving parliaments in the world. The Althing was founded in 930 at ("thing fields" or "assembl ...

Alþingishúsið Alþingishúsið (, ''The Parliament House'') is a classical 19th century structure which stands by Austurvöllur in central Reykjavík, Iceland. It houses ''Alþingi'', the Icelandic parliament. The building was designed by Danish architect Fer ...

, and hoisting the flag of the Bónus supermarket chain on the building's flagpole. His arrest two weeks later resulted in an attempt by a crowd of protesters to storm the

Icelandic Police In Iceland, the Police () is the national police force of Iceland. It is responsible for law enforcement throughout the country, except in Icelandic territorial waters which fall under the jurisdiction of the Icelandic Coast Guard. Police affair ...

headquarters in downtown

Reykjavík Reykjavík ( ; ) is the capital and largest city of Iceland. It is located in southwestern Iceland, on the southern shore of Faxaflói bay. Its latitude is 64°08' N, making it the world's northernmost capital of a sovereign state. With a po ...

where Haukur was held and from where he was subsequently released.

Death

Haukur traveled to Syria in 2017 and joined an anarchist unit of the

International Freedom Battalion The International Freedom Battalion ( tr, Enternasyonalist Özgürlük Taburu; ku, Tabûra Azadî ya Înternasyonal; ar, تابور الحرية العالمي), commonly abbreviated as IFB or EÖT, is a revolutionary socialist armed group co ...

called

Revolutionary Union for Internationalist Solidarity The Revolutionary Union for Internationalist Solidarity ( el, Επαναστατικός Σύνδεσμος Διεθνιστικής Αλληλεγγύης, abbreviated as ), also known as RUIS is an anarchist military unit, part of the Internat ...

(RUIS) alongside the YPG. He participated in the liberation of Raqqa that same year. On 6 March 2018 Turkish media reported that Haukur had been killed in a Turkish airstrike in Afrin on 24 February. As of February 2021, his body had not been retrieved.

Personal life

Haukur was the son of Icelandic activist and writer Eva Hauksdóttir.

References

{{reflist 1986 births 2018 deaths Icelandic environmentalists Icelandic anarchists International Freedom Battalion Military personnel killed in the Syrian civil war People's Protection Units