The influences of Syrian refugees on the cities of Turkey: Gaziantep case

Abstract

One of the Turkish cities where the "Syrian Guests" crowd is Gaziantep. It is one of the most important industrial cities of the country located on the historical Silk Road. Gaziantep is a large urban site housing 1,800,000 inhabitants as well as urban and archaeological protected areas. Today, there are 34,000 "Syrian Guests" in the camps and almost 160,000 of them spread through the city. In the context of this paper, the conditions of the "Syrian Guests" that migrated to Gaziantep during the civil war, and the current profile of the city will be discussed. The focus will particularly be on the effects of the Syrian population on Gaziantep's traditional city center and urban and archaeological protected areas as well as the protection of these areas, and the negative effects of the Syrian Guests on the city's identity. In the context of this paper, the risks and threats, as well as the observed results of the current incidents will be analyzed and shared.