Rangin Muhammad gave birth while displaced, far from her home, after fleeing attacks that made even reaching a hospital impossible. Her daughter was born only hours after the family arrived in Qamishli, carrying with her the marks of a journey shaped by fear, injury, and forced flight. This was not a planned or safe birth; it was a birth that happened under exhaustion, uncertainty, and displacement. The child entered the world with no stability, surrounded by the need to survive.
The newborn was named Deniz. This name was chosen deliberately, in memory of her namesake, a female fighter from Sheikh Maqsoud who was killed by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham militants. Her body was thrown from a building in an attempt to humiliate and terrorize a community. Deniz represented courage, resistance, and the refusal to submit to violence. Her death was meant to silence, but her name continues to be spoken.
By naming their daughter Deniz, Rangin and her family made a powerful statement: that even in the darkest conditions, life will not be erased. Deniz was born into displacement, but also into memory and meaning. This is how Denizes are born in this land: people refuse to let brutality be the final word.
What happened to this family reflects the broader reality for thousands of people from Rojava. Civilians are attacked, displaced, and pushed into unsafe conditions simply because of who they are. Families are forced to flee their towns in the middle of winter, living in overcrowded shelters, lacking medical care, heating, and basic necessities. They carry the constant fear that violence will reach them again.
And yet, life continues. A child was born. A name survived. Darkness did not succeed in stopping existence.
We pray for Deniz, born into displacement, that her life will be filled with safety and dignity.
We pray for Rangin and her family, for healing and protection.
We pray for the courage of Deniz the fighter, and for all women who resisted until their last breath.
And we pray for the thousands of people from Rojava who have fled their hometowns and now face the cold winter without security or shelter. May they find warmth, protection, and the right to return home.
