SHORTLY before he lost his life in an attack that shocked the world, Charlie Hebdo’s editor joined with Kurdish artists in a show of solidarity.

Stephane Charbonnier, better known as Charb, met with acclaimed Kurdish cartoonist Ako Ghareb just weeks before he was shot dead by Islamic extremists.

At the now infamous Paris office, the pair apparently discussed working together on an exhibition that would highlight issues in the conflict-stricken Kurdistan and challenge restrictive ideologies at play throughout the world.

The exhibition was lost along with the lives of France’s most provocative artists but the sentiment that inspired it continues undaunted, according to Mariwan Abdullah.

“The Hebdo shootings were shocking, the work they were doing there was important – these people gave big messages and they made people angry.

“The attacks left artists like us scared but it’s inspired some of us to work more and to use the situation positively to send a bigger message – artists should be able to work freely.”

A friend of Gharib, Mr Abdullah was once a prominent newspaper illustrator working in northern Iraq.

He fled the country in 1997, fearing persecution at the hands of government forces.

“Artists like us draw attention to what’s going on – I did cartoons of people doing wrong to try and give out a good message, hoping they’d never do it again,” he says.

“My cartoons weren’t about religion but were about politics, human rights, freedom and the government.

“I was illustrating articles for newspapers that stood in opposition to the government but if you opposed the government, it wasn’t like it would be here – it just wasn’t allowed.

“I had supporters but there were negative reactions and that’s why I left my country.

“I’d arranged an exhibition with work against the government and the friend I was sharing the exhibition with told me I needed to leave, because of the regime.

“My uncle took me to safety straight away – if he hadn’t, I’d have been in danger and could have lost my life.”

Before fleeing, Mr Abdullah lived and worked in Makhmur, a small town that was left “unsettled” as a result of long-running conflict.

Growing up, he saw family members put their lives on the line to oppose oppressive forces and watched as they were jailed and killed for their views.

His memories are difficult to express but tearfully and in halting English, Mr Abdullah recounts the impact of life in a war-zone.

“There were a lot of problems then, it was very dangerous and easy to lose your life, it was very unsettled when the American and British Armies were there.

“The government was very bad – my dad was jailed because he was Kurdish and stood against them.

“My cousin was cut into two pieces by a tank fighting for freedom for Kurdistan and that had a very huge impact on me, I have very bad memories about it.

“Other artists I knew were persecuted, one famous cartoonist was poisoned and died and others were forced to go to the mountains and into Iran.”

Mr Abdullah’s family took up arms again recently, as Makhmour was taken over by Isis militants before being regained by combined Kurdish forces.

Recalling how his brother had captured an Isis fighter and demanded to know why he was killing other Muslims, the artist said: “My family members are fighting there now as they have in the past – it’s very important to oppose these things.

“Isis are not Muslim in anything but name, they don’t share Muslim values and are very dangerous.

“Some people put religion before anything else and that’s wrong – what about human rights and freedom?”

He ponders further: “But all of this is not just about religion, some people will always get upset if you do something they say is forbidden – they draw a red line and if you step over it, it’s very dangerous.”

“Some countries are stepping backwards, not forwards because of their government or religion– they’re never thinking of the future, only of going backwards, they’re stuck like a bicycle with a broken pedal and I think there’s probably more of this (conflict) to come.”

Throughout warring, conflicting times artists like Charb, his colleagues and allies keep drawing, keep putting pencil to paper as worlds fall down around them – an instinct, Mr Abdullah says, that cannot be dulled by fear.

“Art and cartoons have made big problems for me but I can’t ever give up,” he says, “Art is in my blood and I will never give up, no matter what. We can only die once but you will die every day if you are scared.

“Charlie Hebdo were doing something for freedom and leaving a message, the work they were doing was important – to kill that is not right.

“We must keep art alive, no matter what – without it, nothing will move forwards or backwards. We will become stuck.”