Today marks the fifth anniversary of the death of Mullah Muhammad Said Varol, a prominent figure in Hizbullah Jamaah, who is being remembered and honored for his contributions.

In an interview with the Ilke News Agency, his brother, Mullah Muhammed Beşir Varol, shared insightful details about Mullah Muhammed Said Varol's remarkable scholarly abilities, unwavering dedication to the Islamic cause, exemplary character, and the challenges he encountered throughout his life.

According to Muhammed Beşir Varol, despite his brother's tragic passing in a traffic accident on June 12, 2018, he firmly believes that Mullah Muhammed Said Varol is a martyr for three significant reasons. In his words, “We call my brother Mullah Said Varol a martyr for three reasons. First of all, as our Prophet (PBUH) has stated, if someone dies in Hijrah (migration), he is a martyr. Secondly, as our Prophet (PBUH) has stated, when a person who is busy with knowledge dies, he is a martyr. Third, if someone dies as a result of a natural disaster such as an earthquake, he or she becomes a martyr. We can include those who died in the traffic accidents in this class. Therefore, we call Mullah Said a martyr.”

Recalling the early years of their education in Islamic sciences, Muhammed Beşir Varol shared touching memories, saying: “Our father would not allow us to come home more while we are studying Islamic knowledge. And that's because he wanted us to study Islamic knowledge all the time. For these reasons, we didn't spend much time at home together when we were little. But then I took my brother with me to further study Islamic knowledge. We had the opportunity to spend time together at the madrasa. We even finished our madrasah books in that time.”

Describing his brother's character, Muhammed Beşir Varol expressed: “My brother was a very decent individual with exemplary character. His dialogue with people was very good. He was also very successful in his schooling at the madrasah. Everyone loved my brother for that. In fact, I loved Said more than any other brother. My brother later took lessons from many scholars. For example, Mullah Muhammed Şerif is one of them. In fact, if I'm not mistaken, my brother received his diploma from Mullah Muhammed Şerif. He also stayed in Tillo for a while in the process of studying Islamic knowledge. Of course, my brother had a lot of decency, so his teachers there loved him. They talk about him all the time. Even today, we are witnessing this situation. My brother came to Silvan after completing his studies in Tillo.”

Regarding his brother's involvement in trade, Muhammed Beşir Varol said: “I was running a bookstore in the Silvan district of Diyarbakır province. In the bookstore, I could not make much profit because I could not find much time and I did not understand much about trade. However, when Sait came and started to work with me, we began to make a profit.”

Muhammed Beşir Varol emphasized his brother's commitment to Islamic activities, stating: “My brother also had the opportunity to raise students at the bookstore. In the 80s, bookstores were multi-functional. It could operate almost like a foundation or an association. In other words, bookstores were central to teaching Islamic knowledge and doing useful work for religion at that time.”

Speaking of his brother's humble nature, Muhammed Beşir Varol mentioned: “My brother had an austere lifestyle. He didn't want to come to the forefront. Of course, I think he got this good moral from Hüseyin Velioğlu, our martyred leader. Because Said was very intimate with him. He used to be there for him and learn from him. Other than that, my brother had a morality that was far from hypocritical. When we looked at it, his friends who were with him knew my brother's morals very well.”

Reflecting on their activities, Muhammed Beşir Varol shared: “He did his activities so discreetly and quietly that those who did not know him did not know his activities very well. For example, some people like to grow up and brag when they do something very small. But my martyr brother would never do that. He did great services, but no one would even know. So, there was a lot of abundance in his services. That's how my brother and I were running services in Silvan. In the 90s, we had some unwanted events. We had problems with the PKK even though we didn't want to. So, I went to Batman. My brother stayed in Silvan. Thus, my brother and I didn't see each other very often for a long time.”

Regarding his brother's time in prison, Muhammed Beşir Varol stated: “Of course, my brother was constantly giving himself to Islamic knowledge when he was in prison. During the day, about 20 inmates could come together in the prison. My brother used to make use of this opportunity to teach inmates Islamic knowledge. That's how he spent all his time in prison. He even became ill because of this situation as he constantly taught Islamic knowledge to many inmates in prison.”

Muhammed Beşir Varol further highlighted his brother's dedication to serving others, saying: “He continued to teach even when it was very cold. Even during the winter days, he kept up with the schedules. That's how he got sick. He was taken to the hospital after becoming ill. He even had surgery on his gallbladder during his treatment here. In general, my brother dedicated his whole life to Islamic knowledge and worship.”

Concluding the interview, Muhammed Beşir Varol shared: “Besides teaching Islamic knowledge, my brother also served his friends a lot. He was very humble. In prison, he would listen to his friends' troubles and try to remedy them. In addition, he would do many services to his friends in prison, from cooking to washing dishes and cleaning. I mean, he was never arrogant. Therefore, all his friends and everyone that he spent time with loved him very much.” (ILKHA)