It has been revealed that 3 Syrian workers working in the Siteler Neighborhood of the Güzelbahçe district of İzmir were burned to death as a result of a racist attack on November 16. The tragedy which was first revealed on social media, was confirmed by the Human Rights Association (İHD) İzmir Branch on December 21. Syrian refugees named Mamoun al-Nabhan, 23, Ahmed Al-Ali, 21, and Mohammed al-Bish, 17, who worked in a company that produces and sells construction materials, were burned to death at night by a person who poured gas on them while they were sleeping.

 

A PLANNED MASSACRE

 

After the incident, the firefighters who came to the area kept a report that the fire started accidentally. However, after the crime scene investigation was carried out on the suspicions of the company owner, it was understood that it was arson. While nothing was found in the investigation launched into the massacre, the attacker who carried out the massacre was detained 10 days later for injuring 2 people. The incident came to light after the person detained for the injury confessed in his statement that he had killed 3 Syrians 10 days ago.

 

'I WORKED FOR JITEM'

 

The killer, whose police statements we obtained, confessed that he had committed the murder with nationalistic feelings. In his statement, the attacker, who was born in 1981, stated that he was invited to JITEM by a commander during his military service in the 2000s, and that he took part in JITEM's covert operations for a while. The attacker noted that he would not disclose the operations he participated in, on the grounds that they were "state secrets". The person was later arrested for the crime of "premeditated murder".

 

The families of the workers who lost their lives in the incident called for justice, stating that racism has been on the rise recently.

 

'WE ARE BEING DISCRIMINATED' 

 

Ahmed El-Bish, brother of Mohammed al-Bish (17), who passed away, said that it was frightening that the murder was committed with racist feelings. Pointing out that such individual incidents take place in the society, El-Bish said, “There are racist and discriminatory people in the society. As refugees, we do not exclude anyone. We do not have feelings of hatred or grudge against any Turkish citizen. Unfortunately, the hate speeches against us in the society make us very sad. In fact, even though we are two separate communities, we have some commonalities.”

 

'I WANT HIM TO BE PUNISHED ACCORDINGLY'

 

Emphasizing that they are constantly confronted with discriminatory behavior in the business environment, El-Bish said, “As Syrian workers, we accept whatever salary they give for our families living in Syria. It's not our fault that we're underpaid. Those who employ us give us low wages. We accept these salaries because our living conditions are bad. But from the point of view of Turkish workers, it seems as if we are taking away their jobs. We need to shed a light on the real situation. It is not of our fault or wish that we work for low wages."

 

Addressing human rights organizations and politicians, El-Bish said that they wanted justice to be served and the murderer to receive the heaviest punishment.

 

'RACISM IS ON THE RISE'

 

Hüseyin Al-Ali, brother of Ahmed Al-Ali (21) who passed away, noted that feelings of discrimination, grudge and hatred settled in the society. Al-Ali said, “These people have recently turned to extreme racism. We don't know why they hate us refugees. The only thing we do is to work. We don't do anything else. We are at work from 7 in the morning to 7 in the evening. This is not life we are living. Our families are in Syria. We accept everything here because they live a hard life in Syria.

 

Noting that they struggled against racism at the workplace with some Turkish workers, Al-Ali emphasized that their job was difficult due to the rapid shift to racism. Adding that what happened to them was terrible, Al-Ali asked for justice for his brother.

 

DEMAND FOR JUSTICE

 

Mamoun al-Nabhan's brother, Ahmed al-Nabhan, said: "What has been done is horrendous. It just seems like an argument between refugees and locals. I can't believe someone could do such a thing. We want justice to be served.”

 

 

MA / Tolga Güney - Hakan Yalçın