Oğuz Yüzgeç was active in socialist youth movements during his school and university years in Turkey. His first arrest was for taking part in Newroz, the national holiday and day of resistance of the Kurdish people, in solidarity as a Turk. In 2015, he survived the Suruc massacre, an ISIS attack on a group traveling to Kobane in solidarity. He now lives in Rojava and contributes to its development.
Supporters of the revolution in Rojava, Oğuz Yüzgeç and Sercan Üstündaş spent the last three years in a Damascus jail. Following their release last month, they told Jacobin about the torture they suffered and what they expect from post-Assad Syria.