Birecik

An exhibition, titled "Mesopotamia," has been launched in Italy to promote the provinces in Türkiye's southeastern region.

The exhibition, which the Italian town of Orvieto hosted first, features underwater photographs from the different sites in the provinces of Gaziantep, Adıyaman and Şanlıurfa.

Despite being located in the middle of the southeastern steppe, Şanlıurfa's Halfeti district, which is like a coastal city thanks to the Birecik Dam Lake, attracts the attention of visitors who wish to spend time in nature.

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Some 15 newborns of the endangered northern bald ibis species have been released into the wild in the southeastern province of Şanlıurfa's Birecik district, as part of the annual process to allow the birds not to forget their migration route.

The black rose (karagül), which is grown only in Halfeti district of the southeastern province of Şanlıurfa in the world and takes its unique color and smell from the soil where it grows, is carefully harvested for use in various fields.

A mosaic artisan is building sculptures of endangered birds by using waste materials, such as scrap metals, plastics and electronic cards to raise public awareness about environmental pollution.

The endangered generations of northern bald ibises are protected by serious measures as a result of the works carried out by the General Directorate of Nature Conservation and National Parks.

The works started in 1977 with two adults and nine young birds gave results and today the number of bald ibis is 244 in Birecik district of in the southeastern province of Şanlıurfa.

Lying on the eastern bank of Euphrates River, the district of Halfeti is like a scene out of a Mesopotamian fairy tale. In the southeastern province of Şanlıurfa, Halfeti is called "sunken city" in Turkish, as it submerges under water because of the Birecik Dam.

The number of endangered bald ibises, which are under protection in the Bald Ibis Reproduction Station in the southeastern province of Şanlıurfa's Birecik district, has reached 273 after the birth of 65 new babies.

In the southeastern province of Şanlıurfa's Birecik district, the wires in power transmission lines have been isolated to protect bald ibises from electric currents. 

Abdulkadir Yüksel, a ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) lawmaker for the southeastern province of Gaziantep, died after suffering a heart attack in the capital Ankara on Sept. 25, state-run Anadolu Agency has reported. He was 55.

Yüksel had immediately been rushed to the Güven Hospital after suffering a heart attack but could not be rescued despite all medical efforts.