# Halfeti

Halfeti (Kurdish: Xelfêtî) is a municipality and district of Şanlıurfa Province, Turkey. Its area is 609 km$^2$, and its population is 41,662 (2022). It is near the east bank of the river Euphrates, 120 km (75 miles) from the city of Şanlıurfa.
Most of the villages were submerged in the 1990s under the waters behind the dam on the Euphrates at Birecik. The town was therefore moved to the village of Karaotlak.
Halfeti was the subject of an internet urban legend wherein the town was the only location on Earth where black roses grew.

## Post-dam settlement

As part of the Southeastern Anatolia Project, aka GAP, several dams were constructed in the area and surrounding regions as part of a larger agricultural and economic initiative by the Turkish Government. The town of Halfeti was among those settlements, ancient and contemporary, that would remain under the rising water levels of the local dams and rivers following the execution of the GAP.
Until the area was flooded in 1999, the people lived from fishing in the Euphrates and farming on the riverbank, especially growing pistachios. Some buildings, including the jail, were pulled down and rebuilt in the new town. The old town of Halfeti is only partially submerged and is now a local tourist attraction, especially for ferry trips to visit the ruins of the nearby fortress of Rumkale. The countryside is also attractive, although the green valley of the past is now underwater.
Opposite Halfeti stood the village of Kale Meydanı, which was also submerged, but the large landowners house was taken and reconstructed in the grounds of Harran University.
* The town of Eski Halfeti (Old Halfeti), partially submerged by the rising waters of the Birecik Dam
* The town of Eski Savaşan Köyü (Old Savaşan Köyü), partially submerged under the rising waters of the Birecik Dam
* Mosque of Eski Halfeti
* Fortress of Rumkale

## Composition

There are 49 neighbourhoods in Halfeti District, each headed by a muhtar:
* Altınova
* Argaç
* Argıl
* Aşağıgöğlü
* Balaban
* Beyburcu
* Bitek
* Bozyazı
* Bulaklı
* Çakallı
* Çebekoğlu
* Cumhuriyet
* Dergili
* Durak
* Dutluca
* Erikli
* Fırat
* Fıstıközü
* Gözeli
* Gülaçan
* Günece
* Gürkuyu
* Gürlüce
* Hilalli
* Kalkan
* Kantarma
* Karaotlak
* Kavaklıca
* Kayalar
* Kınık
* Kurugöl
* Macunlu
* Narlık
* Ömerli
* Ortayol
* Özmüş
* Rüştiye
* Savaşan
* Saylakkaya
* Seldek
* Selmanlı
* Şimaliye
* Sırataşlar
* Siyahgül
* Sütveren
* Tavşanören
* Yenimahalle
* Yeşilözen
* Yukarıgöklü

## Politics

In the 31 March 2019 local elections, the candidate of the Justice and Development Party (AKP), Şeref Albayrak, was elected mayor with 54.92% of the votes. His first rival Peoples' Democratic Party's candidate Abdurrahman Çiftçi obtained 37.56% of votes. The current Kaymakam is Zikrullah Erdoğan.

## Notable people

* Mehmet Yasin Sani Kutluğ (1889-1973) politician
* Şevket Arman (1918-1979) one of the first artists in Turkey
* İbrahim Halil Balkıs politician
* Sabiha Gökçen (disputed, 1919-2001) first female fighter pilot
* Nuri Sesigüzel (1937-2023) Turkish artist and singer of Kurdish origin
* Melih Gökçek (born 1948) Turkish politician and former mayor of Ankara
* Abdullah Öcalan (born 1949) Kurdish politician, nationalist and founder of the Kurdish Workers Party.
* Arzu Toker (born 1952) German-speaking writer, journalist, publicist and translator
* Müslüm Gürses (1953–2013) musician
* Ahmet Kanneci (born 1957) Turkish classical guitar virtuoso
* Osman Öcalan (1958–2021) Kurdish military commander
* Mehmet Karayilan (born 1969) politician and former mayor of Halfeti town
* Kewê (born 1979) Kurdish singer
* Bêrîvan Arîn (born 1981) Kurdish singer
* Ömer Öcalan (born 1987) politician
* Dilek Öcalan (born 1987) politician
* Sedat Anar (born 1988) Turkish dulcimer artist