Ilisu dam protest

(Hasankeyf Action Day, Hasankeyf, 20 September 2015) On September 20th, activists, social movements and NGO's joined an international action day for the conservation of Hasankeyf and the Tigris River. Protesting against the Ilisu Dam Project, a large demonstration took place in the 10.000 year old town of Hasankeyf, which is threatened by the Ilisu Dam and Hydroelectric Power Plant Project. If the ongoing construction of the project is completed, there will be a massive social, ecological and cultural destruction in Turkish-Kurdistan, the North of Mesopotamia. The Ilisu Project will also intensify ongoing Middle East conflicts within and outside Turkish borders, in particular in Iraq and Syria. Protesters requested UNESCO designation of Hasankeyf as a world heritage site. In July 2010 after several years of local and international campaigns, the Export Credit Agencies of Germany, Austria and Switzerland suspended credit guarantees due to Turkey's failure to comply with required environmental, social and cultural heritage conditions. However, the Turkish state and the companies found new financing and continue with the project.

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