Osmaniye

As 2023 nears its end, archaeologists working in ancient cities all around Anatolia made significant discoveries throughout the year. According to archaeology magazine Arkeofili editors, the most exciting archaeological discoveries in Türkiye in 2023 are as follows:

1. Boar statue in Göbeklitepe

Many people are marking Mother's Day across the country, from somber quake survivors who lost their mothers, children or spouses, to polling officials in charge of the election.

In the earthquake zone where tens of thousands of people lost their lives in early February, Mother's Day was marked in a bitter mood this year.

The state of emergency declared after the earthquakes in the southern province of Kahramanmaraş will end on May 9, ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) Deputy Chairman for Election Affairs Ali İhsan Yavuz said on May 4 in a televised interview.

The devastating earthquakes that jolted Türkiye's southern provinces in early February also impacted the country's iron exports, according to a business group.

Turkish State Meteorological Services has issued an alert for some provinces as strong precipitations take hold of western Türkiye.

Türkiye is grappling with extreme weather emergencies as torrential rains once again cause floods in the southern quake-hit province of Hatay's Iskenderun district, while heavy snowfall forces schools to close in nine out of all 81 provinces in the country.

Schools reopened on March 13 in the southern quake-hit provinces of Adana, Gaziantep and Osmaniye, as education had to be suspended in the quake-hit region due to the massive destruction caused by the twin tremors last month.

Four specialized sergeants have been killed in the region of the Claw Lock Operation in northern Iraq, the Turkish Defense Ministry has announced.

"Four heroes were martyred, and two others were wounded" in clashes with the PKK terrorists on Sept. 11, a statement by the ministry said.

More than 85 percent of the adult population in Turkey has been double jabbed and it is a "significant success," Health Minister Fahrettin Koca has said.

Nearly 53 million people aged 18 and above have been given two doses of the vaccine against COVID-19, according to data from the Health Ministry.

Turkey's southern provinces have recorded the sharpest increase in weekly COVID-19 cases, data given by a top senior official has shown.

Health Minister Fahrettin Koca disclosed the weekly figures of COVID-19 cases throughout the country recorded between Nov. 20 and 26.