BATMAN/KARABUK, Türkiye

The grief that came with the death of a young music teacher who was killed in a PKK terror attack in 2017 in southeastern Türkiye remains fresh.

Senay Aybuke Yalcin, 22, succumbed to her wounds after a brazen attack targeting the car of the Kozluk region mayor in the Batman province on June 9, 2017. She was traveling in a minibus that was part of the convoy.

Father Sadik Yalcin told Anadolu Agency about his grief.

There is a great fight against terrorism in Türkiye, Yalcin said, adding: "The eradication of the traitors would of course please us as a nation.

"Our soldiers, security forces, the political authority, Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu, and other institutions have devoted themselves to clearing (the country) of them (the terrorists) as much as possible."

He also stressed that the state and the nation have always cared about the passing of her daughter and owned her memory.

The perpetrator of the attack was neutralized in March 2018 by Turkish security forces.

In its more than 35-year terror campaign against Türkiye, the PKK – listed as a terrorist organization by Türkiye, the US, and EU – has been responsible for the deaths of over 40,000 people, including women, children, and infants.

​​​​Remembered fondly at her school

The longing for the young teacher increases day by day, with her school named after her and her photos hung on the school's walls.

Speaking to Anadolu Agency, Mehmet Nezir Sevim, the director of national education at Batman's Kozluk district, said they have been in grief since her killing.

“Teacher Aybuke was a colleague with her beautiful personality and professional qualifications.

"Every year, on the anniversary of her martyrdom, her memory is kept alive," Sevim said, adding that the name of the teacher is kept alive not only in Kozluk and Batman, but also in different parts of Türkiye.

Nazmi Altuner, the principal of Martyr Senay Aybuke Yalcin Anatolian High School, said: "She was the first music teacher in our school, we did not have a music class. She brought many musical instruments to the school with her own means.”

“She developed the students' interest in music. Students loved music thanks to her.

"We have not forgotten Aybuke, we will not forget her, and we will not allow her to be forgotten,” Altuner added.

Dilan Ogurlu, a 10th-grade student, said she is proud to be a student at the school where teacher Aybuke worked.

*Writing by Seda Sevencan in Istanbul.