Gazi Köksal and martyr brother Okur gave important advice to the students.

In Bayburt, within the scope of the ‘Homeland and Heroes Meetings’ events, veterans who have fought for the homeland and have become martyrs in this noble cause, continue to be brought together with students by the Bayburt Provincial Directorate of Family and Social Services. At the event held at Ağlar Baba Girls’ Student Dormitory, Selami Köksal, a domestic security veteran and also the President of the Martyrs and Veterans Families Solidarity Association (ŞAGDER), along with Fehmi Okur, the brother of martyr Mete Okur, met with the students. President Köksal, who lost one of his legs after stepping on a landmine while performing his duty during a cross-border operation in 1995, moved the students with his experiences in the military. Fehmi Okur, whose brother Mete Okur fell as a martyr along with 12 comrades in the avalanche disaster in 1994, participated in the program as a speaker and shared memories of his martyr brother’s military service. The stories told by President Köksal and the martyr’s brother addressed national and spiritual sentiments, while Veteran Köksal narrated the heroism of the Turkish soldier, giving important advice and recommendations to the students.

In the program where terrorism was condemned and prayers were offered for the security forces, the students listened with admiration as Veteran Köksal recounted the heroic struggle of the Turkish soldier, and they did not hesitate to ask their questions out of curiosity. Veteran Köksal and martyr’s brother Okur sincerely answered the students’ questions and thanked those who listened to them and organized the program. Veteran Köksal added that love for the homeland is innate and that every Turk is born a soldier, stating that a Turkish soldier would give their life for the homeland without hesitation. Okur expressed that they remember all martyrs who have passed away with mercy and gratitude, wishing long lives for the veterans, and concluded his speech with the words, “Evil does not run out in the world, nor do the heroes in Oghuz.”

Veteran Köksal, who stated, “May God protect our army and our nation from all kinds of calamities. May God give strength and power to our soldiers and police,” ended his speech by thanking all the participating students.

The program concluded with students taking souvenir photographs with Veteran Köksal and martyr’s brother Okur.