Şemdinli (Kurdish: Şemzînan,[2] Syriac: ܫܲܡܙܕܝܼܢ, romanizedŠamzdīn or Shemsdīn[3]) is a town located in the Şemdinli District of Hakkari Province in Turkey and had a population of 18,220 in 2023.[1] The current mayor is Tahir Saklı from the Justice and Development Party (AKP), elected in 2019.[4]

Şemdinli
Image of Şemdinli
Image of Şemdinli
Şemdinli is located in Turkey
Şemdinli
Şemdinli
Location in Turkey
Coordinates: 37°18′29″N 44°34′16″E / 37.308°N 44.571°E / 37.308; 44.571
CountryTurkey
ProvinceHakkâri
DistrictŞemdinli
Government
 • MayorTahir Saklı (AKP)
Population
 (2023)[1]
18,220
Time zoneUTC+3 (TRT)
Websitewww.semdinli.bel.tr

The town is populated by Kurds of the Humaru and Zerzan tribes and moreover of mixed tribal and non-tribal origin.[5]

Neighborhoods

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Şemdinli is divided into the five neighborhoods of Beşevler, Karşıyaka, Moda, Yayla and Yeni.[6]

Kurdish-Turkish conflict

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Conflict between the PKK and the Turkish state forces

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A bomb exploded in Şemdinli town centre on November 1, 2005. It was officially attributed to the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), an armed Kurdish militant group. On November 9 one man was killed in a grenade attack on a local bookshop. The suspects of this attack, however, were caught in the act by bystanders. They were said to be members of a Turkish Gendarmerie unit, JITEM. The resulting investigation developed into a major political issue in Turkey in the first half of 2006.[7] After a lengthy legal process the three suspects were eventually sentenced to 39 years.

Investigations concerning the Şemdinli bombing trial were blocked by the military, and all the judges and prosecutor associated with the Şemdinli bookshop bombing case transferred from Van to other cities following a June 2007 decree.[8]

Clashes in 2012

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On 23 July 2012, Turkish security forces began a major security offensive, backed by airpower, against the PKK around Şemdinli. Interior minister, İdris Naim Şahin, explained that the forces were attempting to block the PKK's escape routes into northern Iraq, and that as many as 115 PKK fighters had been killed. Television news channel, Nergis Televizyonu (NTV), claimed that up to two thousand troops were involved in the operation. On 5 August 2012, PKK forces fired on a Turkish military post in the village of Gecimli, triggering clashes that killed 22 fighters, soldiers and village guards, and injuring 15 others, including five civilians. The military post was one of a number attacked in Hakkâri Province, although there were no reports of casualties in the other incidents.[9]

Population

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Population history from 1997 to 2023:[10][1]

Population
YearPop.±%
199711,879—    
200711,727−1.3%
201011,211−4.4%
201514,854+32.5%
202015,504+4.4%
202318,220+17.5%

Climate

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Şemdinli has a hot, dry-summer continental climate (Köppen: Dsa).

Climate data for Şemdinli
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Mean daily maximum °C (°F) 1.3
(34.3)
2.9
(37.2)
7.9
(46.2)
14.8
(58.6)
21.4
(70.5)
27.5
(81.5)
31.7
(89.1)
31.9
(89.4)
27.9
(82.2)
21.2
(70.2)
12.6
(54.7)
3.7
(38.7)
17.1
(62.7)
Daily mean °C (°F) −2.5
(27.5)
−1.4
(29.5)
3.4
(38.1)
9.7
(49.5)
15.2
(59.4)
20.8
(69.4)
24.7
(76.5)
24.7
(76.5)
20.4
(68.7)
14.7
(58.5)
7.5
(45.5)
0.1
(32.2)
11.4
(52.5)
Mean daily minimum °C (°F) −6.2
(20.8)
−5.6
(21.9)
−1.0
(30.2)
4.6
(40.3)
9.1
(48.4)
14.1
(57.4)
17.7
(63.9)
17.5
(63.5)
13.0
(55.4)
8.2
(46.8)
2.5
(36.5)
−3.5
(25.7)
5.9
(42.6)
Average precipitation mm (inches) 71
(2.8)
81
(3.2)
93
(3.7)
101
(4.0)
55
(2.2)
11
(0.4)
3
(0.1)
2
(0.1)
4
(0.2)
27
(1.1)
61
(2.4)
64
(2.5)
573
(22.7)
Source: Climate-Data.org[11]

References

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  1. ^ a b c "Population Of Municipalities, Villages And Quarters". TÜİK. Retrieved 10 May 2024.
  2. ^ Avcıkıran, Adem (2009). Kürtçe Anamnez, Anamneza bi Kurmancî (in Kurdish and Turkish). p. 55.
  3. ^ Maclean, Arthur John (1901). Dictionary of the Dialects of Vernacular Syriac. p. 308. Retrieved 2020-05-07.
  4. ^ Şafak, Yeni (2019-12-15). "Hakkari Şemdinli Seçim Sonuçları – Şemdinli Yerel Seçim Sonuçları". Yeni Şafak (in Turkish). Retrieved 2019-12-15.
  5. ^ Peter Alfred, Andrews; Benninghaus, Rüdiger, eds. (1989). Ethnic Groups in the Republic of Turkey. pp. 216–217.
  6. ^ "Türkiye Mülki İdare Bölümleri Envanteri". T.C. İçişleri Bakanlığı (in Turkish). Retrieved 19 December 2022.
  7. ^ "Court says senior officers involved in Şemdinli bombing". Turkish Daily News. 2006-07-19. Archived from the original on 2008-09-19. Retrieved 2008-08-14.
  8. ^ Retrograde Human Rights Trends and Stagnation of the Human Rights Reform Process, 4th part of the Human Rights Watch July 2007 report titled "Turkey: Human Rights Concerns in the Lead up to July Parliamentary Elections".
  9. ^ "Turkish Troops Kill 115 Kurdish Rebels as Offensive Blocks Escape Routes to Iraq". The Guardian. London. Associated Press. 5 August 2012. Retrieved 6 August 2012.
  10. ^ "1997 Population Count" (PDF) (in Turkish). Turkish Statistical Institute. 1999. Archived (PDF) from the original on 30 October 2022.
  11. ^ "Climate:Şemdinli". Climate-Data.org. Retrieved 11 April 2014.
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