24.04.2026 08:02
In Kahramanmaraş, father Mustafa Güngör, who lost his 11-year-old son Kerem Erdem Güngör in a school attack, visited his son's grave with his wife on April 23 National Sovereignty and Children's Day. Unable to hold back his tears, Güngör said, 'This child was very well-mannered. His friend came last night. He protected the girls. His friend Melek says, 'They protected us, brother.'
On April 23 National Sovereignty and Children's Day, families and friends visit the graves of Belinay Nur Boyraz, Kerem Erdem Güngör, Zeynep Kılıç, and Bayram Nabi Şişik, who lost their lives in the attack at Ayser Çalık Middle School and were buried side by side in Sheikh Adil Cemetery. Teacher Mustafa Güngör and his wife Yasemin Güngör left flowers and prayed at Kerem Erdem's grave.
"KEREM PROTECTED HIS GIRLFRIENDS" Mustafa Güngör, saying he visits his son's grave every day, stated: "It's a children's holiday, but we buried our child. We've entered an irreversible path; we feel the absence of our little one. We come to our child's side before breakfast. We got into the car yesterday, and I said, 'One person is missing.' I looked and Kerem wasn't there. We lost a child. May Allah not let anyone experience this. This child was very well-mannered. Last night, his friend came. He protected the girls, these children. His friend Melek says, 'They protected us, brother.' She says, 'Our teacher first sent us to jump out the window.' At that moment, he kept shooting at them, at the boys. 'Kerem protected us, bless him,' she says. I was moved. This brings comfort to our hearts. These children sacrificed themselves. He was already a very brave child. As Yaşar Kemal says, 'A person fills not with their body but with their heart'; like that, this child fills with his heart. As a father, I never got enough of him. He was a very well-mannered child, successful. He was a very smart child," he said.
"I COULDN'T PROTECT MY CHILD" Güngör, who also demands punishment for the parents of the attacker Isa Aras Mersinli, said: "I am calling out to our President. We call you 'Father'; you are the father of this country. I was also this child's father. Because I couldn't protect him, I broke my arm, broke my hand by hitting walls. It eats me up inside; I can't sleep at night. The state is great. For me, the world was one side, and my child was the other. This child was going to be an aircraft engineer. That's how we were raising these children. After losing my hand, my child, I hit walls and broke it without even knowing. The next day, I saw it swelling and bruising; we went to the doctor, and there was a fracture; they bandaged and casted it. There is no pain in my hand. I wish both my hands were broken if my child could be in this world. I broke my hand because I couldn't protect my child. We used to remember Ahmet Minguzzi and cry together. He said, 'If something happens to me, can you protect me, Dad?' I said, 'My son, you are entrusted to Allah. Don't say that, I would sacrifice myself for you.' We couldn't protect our little one."