A trend of women posting photos and videos of their braided hair has grown on Turkish social media platforms in recent days following reports that a member of Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa’s Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) cut the braids off of a Kurdish SDF fighter in northern Syria.
Written by Leo Kendrick
The HTS member in question is Rami Yusuf Dehesh, who appeared in a recent online video showing him holding cut-off braids allegedly from a female Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) in the northern city of Raqqa. Dehesh is alleged to have formerly been affiliated with ISIS, Nusra Front, and Ahrar al-Sham groups.
Raqqa was recently conquered by Sharaa’s government forces following years of SDF control.
Braided hair trend grows in Turkey
As Dehesh’s video spread on Turkish social media platforms, numerous pro-Kurdish politicians, artists, and celebrities posted videos and pictures of them braiding their hair in response, including DEM Party deputy speaker Pervin Buldan, DEM Party Erzurum representative Meral Danış Beltaş, DEM Party spokesperson Ayşegül Doğan, and DEM Party group deputy chairwoman Gülistan Kılıç Koçyığıt.
A nurse working in Turkey’s western Kocaeli province was detained after posting a video of her braided hair on social media. Turkey’s main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) has formally protested the nurse’s detention in parliament.
