Wednesday, February 23, marks the seventh anniversary of the ISIS attacks on the city of Tal Tamr and the villages of Khabour, inhabited by the Assyrians.

The remembrance began with a minute of silence in honor of the souls of the martyrs, in the presence of dozens of representatives of civil institutions in the city, political parties, the relations of the Tel Tamr Military Council and the components of the region, followed by the recitation of prayers by the priest Boghos Ishaya.

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It was followed by several speeches, including the administrator of the Assyrian Martyrs' Families Council, Jamila Kako, who welcomed at the beginning of her speech all the attendees and offered condolences to the families of the martyrs against the darkness of ISIS.

It was followed by a speech on behalf of the Assyrian Democratic Party, delivered by the administrator, Athur Ishaq, who said: "The attack of ISIS mercenaries in 2015 on the villages of our people was an attempt to genocide, seven years ago, and the memory of our Assyrian people is still the memory of that massacre, which is a chain of what our people were subjected to at the hands of the Ottomans, Turks and in the Nineveh Plain.

She added: "On that day, the Assyrian nation incurred heavy losses by targeting the largest gathering of Assyrians in Mataris in the world, and this confirms the existence of pre plans and the involvement of a number of regional and international parties in their attacks against our people."

Then a speech was delivered on behalf of the Democratic Union Party (PYD) by administrator Idris Namo, who recalled the region's martyrs with all its components on the seventh anniversary of their martyrdom and said: "These days bear a painful memory, and these pains are unforgettable, but thanks to the sacrifices of these martyrs, we live today in safety and peace."

Namo added: "Today we joined hands with all the components, a clear message to the whole world that we are committed and are following in the footsteps of our martyrs until their demands are met."

Then a speech on behalf of the Internal Security Forces, delivered by the administrator, Salman Nouhi, to recall at the beginning of his speech all the martyrs and said: "If it were not for these martyrs, we would not be here today, and if it were not for the fighters who are standing today on the lines of contact, we would not have felt security and peace. We, as the Internal Security Forces, pledge to our people that we will proceed in protecting our people until the last breath. We will not abandon the gains of our martyrs and our people."

The remembrance was concluded by lighting candles in front of the council building in remembrance of the souls of the martyrs.

Tomorrow the people of Tal Tamr district will remember the seventh anniversary of the martyrs of Tal Tamr in the Martyrs' Families Council, while the Syriac Military Council will remember the seventh anniversary of the attacks in the village of Tal Hormuz, south of Tel Tamer.