Yüksekova

History

It is believed that a permanent settlement was established in Yüksekova (Gever) in 7000 BC. The city was ruled by the various early age civilizations and empires of the Hurrians, Medes, Persians and Urartians. A remaining ruin of the Urartian civilization is the Ordu Road, which has inscriptions written in Urartian language. The city was conquered by the Ottoman Empire during the reign of Suleiman the Magnificent. whose numbers declined due to the Ottoman Empire's genocide of Assyrian Christians. During World War I, the city was briefly occupied by the Russian Empire. In the late summer and fall of 2015, following the 2014 Kobanî protests, which were part of the broader third phase of the Kurdish–Turkish conflict, local Kurdish youth and activists, with some of them being affiliated with the YDG-H, and later YPS, organized popular protests, riots, and declared "self-management" in the city of Yüksekova (Gever). This led to Turkish government imposed curfews and heavy fighting between the Kurdish side and Turkish security personnel, which included the deployment of the Turkish army in the city. In March 2016, Deutsche Welle described the situation as a military siege imposed by the Turkish armed forces. Apartment buildings were flattened, houses were left without roofs, large holes pierced house walls, and bomb craters covered the streets following the Turkish Army's "operation" in the city. According to a report of the Union of Chambers of Turkish Engineers and Architects 3,637 houses were made uninhabitable and 35% of the population was left homeless. In 2022, the Human Rights Association (İHD) reported that, despite six years having passed, the effects of the destruction caused during the period of curfews remained visible. Remziye Yaşar (Peoples' Democratic Party)…

Most-observed species

• Eurasian Magpie

  Pica pica (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  373
• Hooded Crow

  Corvus cornix Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  366
• Western Jackdaw

  Coloeus monedula (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  323
• Rock Pigeon

  Columba livia J.F.Gmelin, 1789 · Aves
  311
• European Starling

  Sturnus vulgaris Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  302
• House Sparrow

  Passer domesticus (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  267
• Rook

  Corvus frugilegus Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  211
• Long-legged Buzzard

  Buteo rufinus (Cretzschmar, 1829) · Aves
  181

Most recent

• M 4.6 — 2025-03-11
  37 km E of Çukurca, Turkey
• M 4.4 — 2024-02-11
  33 km ENE of Çukurca, Turkey
• M 4.3 — 2024-02-03
  29 km ENE of Çukurca, Turkey
• M 4.4 — 2023-12-31
  30 km SE of Hakkâri, Turkey
• M 4.4 — 2023-12-31
  32 km ENE of Çukurca, Turkey
• M 4.3 — 2023-06-26
  17 km SW of Çukurca, Turkey