Şêx Mihemed - Zaretê

General Information

Also Known As

Şêx Mihemed (Zaretê), Şêx Mihemed el-Kûfî, Şêx Mihemed shrine (Zaretê)

Type

Ziyareta

Nahiya (Subdistrict)

Efrîn

Village or Nearby Villages

Zaretê

Şêx Mihemed, known as Şêx Mihemed el-Kûfî, was a shrine of Zaretê in the Efrîn sub-district. The village name, Çetel Ziyaretê, means "two shrines," after this shrine and the nearby Şêx Yûsif el-Kûfî. The two men were kinsmen who fell as martyrs in a great battle on this spot and were buried here, and a shrine with two domes was raised over them. In 2013, when ISIS entered the village, both shrines were blown up.1

This is one of several separate shrines in the Afrin region that share the name. The others are:

Transcripts

Zaretê (Ax û Welat – Episode 1075):

  • 10:46 – The narrator explains that the village is named after its two shrines, Şêx Yûsif and Şêx Mihemed, and that ISIS blew up both in 2013.
  • 34:30 – A villager recounts Şêx Yûsif el-Kûfî and his cousin Şêx Mihemed el-Kûfî, who fell in battle here and were buried under a two-domed shrine.
  • 36:05 – A villager describes ISIS blowing up the domes.

Videography

Zaretê (Ax û Welat – Episode 1075): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UUP8bWdrNuY

Bibliography

References

  1. Ax û Welat, "Zaretê," Episode 1075 (village Zaretê), YouTube video, at 10:46–36:13, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UUP8bWdrNuY. Kurdish quote: "Yek bi navê Şêx Yûsif û ya din jî bi navê Şêx Mihemed e. Lê di sala 2013an de çeteyên DAIŞê dema derbasî gund bûn, her du ziyaretgeh teqandin." English translation: "One was named Şêx Yûsif and the other Şêx Mihemed. But in 2013, when ISIS gangs passed through the village, they blew up both shrines." Kurdish quote: "Pismamekî xwe jî vêra bû, vêra digotin Şêx Mihemed el-Kûfî... li ser wana rabû qubbe girtin, rabû zaretak çêkirin... bi du qubba." English translation: "His cousin was there too, called Şêx Mihemed el-Kûfî... over them a dome was raised and a shrine was built... with two domes." ↩