Sayfo; Village of Mzizah

Village of Mzizah

About 70 Syriac and 50 Kurdish families lived in this village and the head of the Heferkan clan, Calabi Agha who also lived in the village. At the time of the Sayfo, he was in prison in Ayntab, and incarcerated with him was Shemun of the Hanne Haydo family from the village of Sare. The priest in the village was Father Hanno from ‘Ayn-Wardo and the Syriac people leader was Masud from the Mirza family. He was a wise and praiseworthy leader, who also headed the defence of ‘Ayn-Wardo and he was gentle and nice, and courageous in battle. 

When he heard about the murder of Christians in Tur-Abdin, he went round the Syriac villages, talked to the villagers, and urged them to be armed for battle and encouraged them. In ‘Ayn-Wardo, he heard of the attack on Midyat by the enemies of Christendom. He quickly gathered seventy armed men and went to Mzizah. He ordered the people to take everything along that they could carry, including cattle, and to leave the rest and go to ‘Ayn-Wardo, taking them there safely. People stayed there as long as the persecutions lasted, and they only returned after the trouble was over. Masud was afraid to live in the village together with the Kurds so he moved to the village of Kafro Tahtayto but was killed there and his companions returned to their village