Forced land seizure in Hatay: 'We survived the earthquake, but the government is killing us'

In two villages in the Samandağ district of Hatay, the hardest hit by the 2023 earthquakes, which claimed over 50,000 lives, construction machinery entered agricultural lands expropriated for post-disaster housing projects. Work began on lands containing olive and citrus trees; many trees were uprooted.

Residents of Mağaracık and Hıdırbey neighborhoods were outraged by the expropriations, which they said began without any prior notice. As tensions rose between villagers and the gendarmerie when construction machinery started operating, two citizens whose lands had been expropriated fell ill at the scene. After receiving medical attention, they were taken to the hospital.

In a video filmed at the scene, a local resident shows the uprooted trees and says, “They uprooted our trees without even notifying us. Is this justice, is this legal, is this fair? We were already in enough loss. Now they’ve done this to our gardens too. The earthquake didn’t kill us, the government did.”

"Deprem bizi öldürmedi, hükümet öldürdü"

👉 Samandağ'a bağlı Mağaracık ve Hıdırbey mahallelerinde istimlak edilen arazilere iş makineleri girdi, ağaçları söktü. Arazileri kamulaştırılan yurttaşlar, yaşananlara tepki gösterdi.

🗞️@VecihCuzdan'ın haberihttps://t.co/7IlUHAC6BL pic.twitter.com/fa94BpXGS0

— bianet (@bianet_org) April 16, 2025

'Irreparable damage'

Speaking to bianet, lawyer Cuma Irmak said that lawsuits they filed at an administrative court for the annulment of the urgent expropriation decisions are still ongoing.

He added that they received information in the morning that, despite the ongoing legal process, construction machinery had entered the lands accompanied by security forces.

Irmak emphasized that their request for a stay of execution had been rejected by the court, but the hearing on the substance of the case was scheduled for Apr 21. 

“We went to the site. The officials said the action was being carried out in line with directives," he said. "I told them that if the lands were accessed before the hearing on April 21, the hearing would become meaningless and irreparable damage would occur.

"But we were not listened to. All the trees were uprooted—olive, laurel, apricot, plum, mandarin, lemon… And they were all in bloom, in the ripening stage.”

'The court would reject the case'

Irmak further said they met with the Samandağ district governor and received a promise that work would be halted until the court date, which didn't happen. “Those working on the site said the court would reject the case. So they already know the outcome of a hearing that hasn’t happened yet.

"And in the end, the trees were removed; wells, artesian sources, and irrigation channels were damaged. There were three or four houses in the area, they had said they wouldn’t be touched, but the poles supplying electricity to those houses were dismantled. Additionally, two of our citizens became ill and were taken to the hospital.”

'Last agricultural lands'

Villagers have been resisting the expropriation of approximately 200 decares of agricultural land since the beginning of 2025, as part of the 11-phase post-disaster housing and commercial center project, noted Irmak.

“Citizens are saying, ‘Do not touch the olive and citrus trees we have nurtured for years, that we opened to agriculture, and that we see as our children'," he said. "Yet, just above these lands, there are thousands of decares of unused treasury land.

"On one hand, agriculture is being encouraged, while on the other, you are targeting the last agricultural lands in Samandağ.”

'We can’t find anyone in charge'

Cuma Uzun, the mukhtar of Mağaracık neighborhood, said that around 6,500 people live in the neighborhood and that they have received significant migration since the earthquakes.

He emphasized that they have not been able to find anyone responsible to address the urgent expropriation decisions taken for the housing construction.

Saying that they have made many attempts to meet with officials for months, Uzun added, “We went to the governor’s office, and they directed us to the Provincial Directorate of Environment and Urban Planning.

"There, we were told, ‘There’s nothing you can do.’ Yet there are citrus trees and olive groves here; these are the main sources of livelihood for citizens."

Uzun called on authorities to work together with the citizens to find a common solution. (VC/VK)