6th Mother’s Day Spent with Son Martyred in Terror Attack

In the attack carried out by the terrorist organization PKK militants in the Şemdinli district of Hakkari, Halil İbrahim Şık, who was martyred, has left his mother Sıdıka Şık with a heavy heart on Mother’s Day for the past 6 years. Halil İbrahim Şık, the first child of the couple Bekir and Sıdıka Şık who have three children, became a soldier by taking the contracted private soldier exams after returning from the military service. He started his duty as a contracted private in Hakkari. In 2018, he was martyred during an attack by PKK militants in the Çam Tepe Upper Region of Şemdinli district. The martyr, who was married and had one child, was laid to rest in 2018.

Memories and Feelings of Mother Sıdıka Şık

Mother Sıdıka Şık, who marked her 6th Mother’s Day without her martyr son, said, “He was in Hakkari, there was only 1 month left for his duty to end. He called and said, ‘I will come.’ It was not meant to be. Sometimes I would call, I would say, ‘Son, be careful.’ He would say, ‘Mom, nothing bad will happen,’ jokingly. He was married and had a newborn daughter. When he became a martyr, his daughter was 5 months old. It would have been nice to be together on Mother’s Day, but it didn’t happen, that’s it,” she said.

Talking about her son who became a soldier without his family’s knowledge, Sıdıka Şık said, “He applied for the exams without our knowledge and really wanted to become a soldier,” and added, “It wasn’t long after he returned from the military. He applied without our knowledge. I was unwell, I was in the hospital at that time. His father asked me if I knew about it. He asked, ‘The boy went to Ankara for an exam, what’s going on?’ I was praying, ‘Hopefully, he won’t pass.’ He did, he went. It seems it was meant to be that way, it went like that,” she said.

Details Keeping the Memory of Martyr Son Halil İbrahim Şık Alive

She mentioned that she decorated the walls of her living room with the pictures of her son Halil İbrahim Şık at the request of her husband. “His father wanted it, I didn’t want it at first. It was hard for me, then I got used to it. I look at them, I feel like he is with me. We don’t have another room,” she said.

Her grandson and son share the same name. Şık stated that her grandson bears the same name as her martyr son Halil İbrahim, and explained that it was difficult for the whole family to address her grandson by her son’s name after his passing. Şık said, “It was difficult to call him by his name at first. We are slowly starting to say ‘Halil İbrahim’ now. His grandfather was constantly saying it but I, his mother, and father couldn’t say it. It’s hard. His father was saying, ‘How can I call my son by my brother’s name.’ Believe me, the grandson is sweeter than his own child. I can’t say anything else,” she expressed.