Key actors — tap for context
Ephesus
an ancient Greco-Roman city near Selçuk, Turkey, in İzmir Province, a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2015
Why here: the site of the dispute over a "visitor center" in the protected zone near the lower gate
More info →Filiz Ceritoğlu Şengel
mayor of the town of Efes Selçuk for the opposition Republican People's Party (CHP)
Why here: claims the ministry is pouring concrete "into the heart of humanity's heritage" while bypassing local government
EGEÇEP
the Aegean Environmental and Cultural Platform, bringing together activists and lawyers
Why here: filed a lawsuit to halt the project and, following an expert site inspection, warns of "irreversible destruction"
Ministry of Culture and Tourism
the Turkish government department responsible for both the heritage site and the project
Why here: defends the project as protecting the site and denies pouring concrete
UNESCO
the United Nations agency for education, science and culture, which maintains the World Heritage List
Why here: according to Turkish media, has begun looking into the intervention at the Ephesus site
More info →The dispute is now before the administrative court in İzmir, and according to Turkish media, UNESCO has also begun looking into the site. According to EGEÇEP, following an expert inspection of the construction site on June 26, the work — including the concrete pouring — "suddenly accelerated," and the platform warns that until the court rules on the request for an interim injunction, the damage will be irreversible. Lawyer and platform spokesperson Arif Ali Cangı says that what is happening at the heritage site constitutes "the criminal offense of unauthorized intervention." Gazete Yenigün ↗
The governing AKP denies that this is a "shopping mall" within the heritage site. AKP member of parliament for İzmir Mahmut Atilla Kaya called such claims a "huge lie" and said the circulated photographs were fake — according to him, no "reinforced concrete structure" is being built at the site, the stalls will be "fully removable," and the work amounts merely to earth fill and land grading, intended to remove older unauthorized structures and actually reduce commercial pressure on Ephesus. Gündeme Bakış ↗
