“It is the fifth time that we have held the Cilo and Sat Festival. A total of 15,000 people have come here," Idris Akbayik, Hakkari governor, told Rudaw. "There is peace in the region, there is life, and everyone is happy."
Located in Hakkari (Colemerg) province, Mount Cilo is the third-highest mountain in the country at 3,400 meters above sea level.
Mount Cilo was a prohibited area from the 1990s until 2018 due to armed clashes between the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) and the Turkish army. The area was opened to the public and the first festival was held four years ago in September after tensions between the two eased in that area. In 2020, it was announced as the 45th national park, following a decision by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
Mohammed Jasim Harki is a tourist from Erbil province in the Kurdistan Region. He says he considers himself part of the region and this is the second year in a row that he has taken part in the festival.
"I came from Diyana [Soran, Erbil province] last night. We were in Colemerg [Hakkari]. We left at 4 o'clock in the morning and arrived at 9 o'clock," Harki told Rudaw on Saturday.
"The route was so difficult. I came last year too. I am from the village of Stune [in Erbil province]... We are close to each other, and therefore we consider ourselves as the people of this area. We are very happy to have come here," he added.
During the summer festival, several music concerts, and entertaining activities were held for the tourists.
The festival is held every year at the beginning of July around the glacial Sat pond in Cilo Mountain, a region that is still partially covered with snow.
