Column – July 15: That night, we took the revenge of a century. That night, we actually changed history!

July 15 is the declaration that we are “us,” that our hearts and souls are one, we  are Turkey, a nation, we stand on the “homeland” axis, and we are Anatolia. It is a challenge; it is the meaning of the term “homeland” carried to the 21st century. It is the “betrayal” that has been ongoing for centuries.

July 15 is the end of the enslavement which started with World War I and has been hidden to this day; after a century it is coming into existence once again; it is the initiation of a new rising period; it is liberation, nationalization, localization, Islamization.

July 15 is the milestone of our return to history, to culture, to the geography, return to our brotherhood, return to our plans and claims. It is the indicator that we are dedicated to the great march.

July 15 is the declaration to the whole world that we are no longer going to retreat, that, if necessary, thousands of us will die as martyrs and will continue on our path, that we are not going to listen to the garrison states in the region, that from now on, we are going to ignore imperial custodians, that we have ended the history frozen in the 20th century.

July 15 is proof that we began a new era just as we did after the Crusades, after the Mongol invasion, after World War I. It is proof that we saved ourselves from the third big shock, that we learned how to walk with heads held high once again, that we are now paying no regard to those who acted as guardians over us, that, for the first time after the Ottoman Empire, we are great Turkey.

July 15 is the sign that we turned the “siege century” into the “showdown century” and, that in the next step, we are going to switch to the “challenging century.” It is proof that we are done with the 20th century and that we will never again accept a second 21st century.

July 15 is recorded history that we reversed their plans for the second division – as a matter of fact, destruction – after the Ottomans, their plans to tear Anatolia to shreds, their project to suffocate it in ethnic and sectarian wars and their intentions to destroy this last fort, the last defense line.

July 15 is the resistance of our nation, the children of Anatolia against those selling out their country, their nation, values, history and honor. It is burying into history those who were raised for decades under the name of community, under the name of terrorist organization, under the name of nongovernmental organization, under the guise of intelligentsia, who were sheltered and hidden for these kind of days and who, when the time came, were activated.

July 15 is the history of those men who shielded bullets with their bosoms that night, who lay in front of tanks, of women who did not falter once in the face of bullets, of those who ran, in the dark of the night, to martyrdom for the homeland. Those people were an example, that when the time should come, how every inch of land in this country, every village, neighborhood, and city will turn into defense lines, resistance forts. Those people are the leaders of the tradition of resistance that has been ongoing for a millennium.

July 15 is the last battle of independence we put up against tens of states, including the U.S., the Germans, the British, against the traitors within. It is our latest victory. That night was the night we changed political history. It is the night we continued the struggle we put up in Kut al-Amara, in Gaza, in the Balkans, in Caucasia, in Sarıkamış, in Medina.

July 15 is the date the region’s last standing fort Anatolia, which has been an asylum for everyone kicked out of their country for the last two centuries, which is home to the homeless, which has taken in orphans, taught the way to the entire region, showed the method of new independence wars and spread the “relentless resistance tradition” to all climates.

July 15 is the time we fit the struggle of a century into a single night; it is the time we turned the global power map upside down and once more resumed our role as history-makers. Everyone who became a martyr, veteran, disabled, and an orphan that night, everyone who prayed, poured their anger out on to the streets and from whose hearts God took away the fear that night, are sacred for this country and nation.

That night, God has shown that He is with our nation. He has given glad tidings that on the path to victory, He will be with us as we continue the great march with more solid and stronger steps.

The “relentless resistance” is ongoing. The struggle will continue until this country is fully liberated, until the region retrieves its honor and the traitors are completely eliminated.

This is a destiny for us, for our nation.

It is a destiny for those who have never cried for ages, who have never kneeled in fear, who have never taken refuge in others’ history, who have given martyrs on this territory for centuries.

And we are going to continue on this path.

Keep your fists clenched.

*Ibrahim Karagül is a Turkish writer and journalist. He is the editor-in-chief of Turkish Yeni Şafak newspaper.

(Published in Yeni Şafak Turkish newspaper on July 11, 2017)