"Four years earlier Ari had started an organisation to fight wildfires with his best friends. They shared their phone numbers around Halabja, saying if wildfires break out, let us know. It's a traditional thing in Halabja. When something, somewhere catches on fire, the other villagers, other tribes, when they hear the news, we all go automatically to help to control the fire. The communities, they know, the first thing we need to do is take action."
"We are four sisters and three brothers, and Ari was the third brother. Since he was a child, he was very beautiful. We called him suruspi [white and red] because he had fair hair and green eyes. He was very well loved by Mum and Dad. His brothers and sisters, we loved him. He was always volunteering and helping everybody in the community. Especially guests, strangers, he was loving of strangers too. His love and passion was unconditional towards everybody. He really loved nature as well."
Halabja in the Hawraman region of Iraqi Kurdistan is experiencing increasingly frequent wildfires driven by natural events and hotter, drier weather. Iraq is facing its worst drought in nearly a century, and climate change increases the likelihood of drought and wildfire. On 17 August a fire began; Ari left work at a kebab shop, showered, grabbed his bag to go to the gym, received a call about a fire, and went to help. Four years earlier Ari and friends formed an organisation to fight wildfires and circulated phone numbers across Halabja. Community tradition dictates that villagers and tribes rush to control fires and take immediate individual action. Ari was a beloved volunteer who loved nature and helped strangers.
Read at www.theguardian.com
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