Her life was given for the children: Promises made for martyred teacher Ayla Kara were not kept
Translated from Turkish, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.
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- Promises to name a school after martyred teacher Ayla Kara, who died protecting students in Kahramanmaraş, remain unfulfilled four months later.
- Her family is waiting for the government's commitment to be honored, expressing disappointment that her name has only been given to a computer lab.
- Ayla Kara died on April 15, 2026, during a school shooting where she shielded students from gunfire.
Four months after math teacher Ayla Kara sacrificed her life to protect her students during a deadly attack in Kahramanmaraş, promises to name a school in her honor remain unfulfilled. The family of the martyred teacher is still awaiting the realization of these commitments, expressing deep disappointment that her legacy has not been more prominently recognized.
They told me they would name a school after my wife.
Ramazan Kara, the husband of the fallen teacher, stated that high-ranking government officials met with the family after the attack. They were promised that Ayla Kara's name would be honored by naming a school after her. The family had hoped for a prestigious high school to bear her name, but they were told this was not possible due to "procedures." The possibility of naming the new building of the school where she was martyred was also discussed, but despite seeing the project plans, there has been no further development.
So far, the only recognition of Ayla Kara's sacrifice is a computer lab named after her at Albayrak Primary and Middle School in the Türkoğlu district of Kahramanmaraş. Her husband emphasized that his wife deeply loved her students and school, and her act of self-sacrifice was a testament to that. He believes her intervention significantly reduced the number of casualties, stating, "If she hadn't put herself forward, the death toll and injured count could have been much higher."
We saw the project for the new building, but there has been no development yet. We want the process to accelerate and the promises to be kept.
"We are still living with that pain," Ramazan Kara said, questioning the difficulty in immortalizing the name of a martyred teacher. "My wife would have given her life for the children again in the same situation. Is it that hard to keep the name of a martyred teacher alive?" he asked, conveying his sorrow and frustration.
My wife loved her students and her school very much. Her shielding them was the greatest proof of that. If she hadn't put herself forward, the death toll and injured count could have been much higher.
On April 15, 2026, a 14-year-old student opened fire at Ayser Çalık Middle School in Onikişubat, Kahramanmaraş. The shooting resulted in the deaths of 12 people, including 9 students and math teacher Ayla Kara, with 13 others injured.
We are still living with that pain. Those bullets were not just fired at my wife, but at many lives. My wife would have given her life for the children again in the same situation. Is it that hard to keep the name of a martyred teacher alive?
DistantNews Editorial
Originally published by Cumhuriyet in Turkish. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.
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