23 August 2013 Friday
Family of Turkmen leader struggle to get used to his absence
The family of Ali Hasim Muhtaroglu are struggling to get used to his absence.
The family of Turkmen leader Ali Hasim Muhtaroglu, 47, who was assassinated in a bomb attack in Iraq’s Tuzkurmatu province are struggling to get used to his absence, as if the case of many Turkmens in the country.
After his assassination, the Muhtaroglu family could no longer live in Tuzkhurmatu and moved to Kirkuk.
Decorated by her husband’s photos, his wife Nedva Muhtaroglu is trying to adapt to her new life. “The Turkmen cause was his first priority. He gave more importance to his nation than to his family. He always said if I am martyred one day, wrap my body with the Turkmen flag. He devoted his life to the Turkmen cause. He was a good man, good father and good husband. He was everything for me, not only a husband but also my father, my brother…everything."
Decorated by her husband’s photos, his wife Nedva Muhtaroglu is trying to adapt to her new life. “The Turkmen cause was his first priority. He gave more importance to his nation than to his family. He always said if I am martyred one day, wrap my body with the Turkmen flag. He devoted his life to the Turkmen cause. He was a good man, good father and good husband. He was everything for me, not only a husband but also my father, my brother…everything."
Due to his intensive schedule, Muhtaroglu hardly found time for his family. His son, who is the last family member who saw Muhtaroğlu before the attack said “He came to Baghdad one week before he was martyred. We were together. Later we talked on the phone just one day before the attack. He informed me he would appear on a live show. “I will go to Tuzkhurmatu tomorrow” he said, but I objected. He went.” Muhtaroğlu’s son explained.
Haşimoğlu’s uncle Imad Rıza, who was heavily injured in the same attack, returned to Tuzkhurmatu after his medical treatment in Ankara. “We were sitting when the bomb attack happened just five minutes after the first explosion. I swear to God, Tuzkhurmatu is abandoned. After Ali Haşim there is no one left in this city to defend the rights of the people in Tuzkhurmatu. We can only pray for a better situation.” he said.
The atmosphere in the late Turkmen leader’s home was one of distress and loss. One may feel as if time is standing still in the hall filled with Muhtaroğlu’s photos, awards and plaques.
Kuzey News Agency
