Despite hunger, deprivation, and every kind of siege, Gaziantep is the name of a will that did not kneel, that did not surrender the honor of the sacred homeland to the enemy with its 6,317 martyrs, where faith rose up where possibilities ended, where faith resides in its stones and soil, and courage in its heart! It is the epic of a struggle fought by its children, its youth, its elderly, its women, and its men. That epic is the faith of Şahin Beys, Şehit Kamils, Karayilans, Abdullah Ediplers, and Happas.
The bullet marks that once stood on the walls of historic buildings and the minarets of mosques were the memory of this city's honorable resistance. The earthquake we experienced on February 6 may have destroyed those stones, but those marks now stand deeper, in our hearts.
We remember our beloved martyrs with mercy, express our gratitude to our veterans, and pray for mercy upon the heroic veterans who are no longer with us today.
May December 25th, the Liberation of Gaziantep, be blessed.
