A Hopeful Story from Türkiye
Nadir Bilik (41), whose brother, a village guard, was martyred in Gabar Mountain in 1991 and who left his village in 1994 due to the threat of terrorism, started working in oil production on the same mountain 35 years later. Expressing his pride in working in the mountains where his brother was martyred, Bilik said, “Right now, it's not the sound of guns or fighting that rises from Gabar, but the sound of drilling rigs. There is no longer fear in these lands. There is production, there is hope.”
A Transformation is Taking Place
The discovery of oil in the Gabar Mountain has brought about a major transformation in the region. Economic life is reviving and social life is becoming more vibrant. Şırnak is becoming a magnet for migration. Nadir Bilik, a father of seven who was born and raised in the village of Güleşli at the foot of Gabar Mountain, is one of the most vivid witnesses to this transformation. Bilik recounted his experiences from his childhood, overshadowed by terrorist incidents, to his involvement in oil production.
His brother, a Gabar Martyr
Bilik said that when he was around 10 years old, they used to play in the narrow streets of Güleşli, adding, “My mother would boil milk and bake bread for us in the morning. I can never forget that scent from those days.” Bilik said that in 1991, when he was 7 years old, his 25-year-old brother Ismail, who was a village guard, was killed. “My brother went on an operation with seven gendarmes from our village to the Yılantepe area of Gabar. They were ambushed. My brother was killed. He had 17 bullets in his body. He was the father of four children,” he said.
We Left Our Table
Stating that everything changed with the intensification of terrorism, Bilik recounted their forced departure from their village of Güleşli on a May evening in 1994 with these words: We were sitting at the table for dinner. A voice came from the mosque loudspeaker. ‘If you don't evacuate the village tonight, the terrorists will burn and destroy it.’ We left our table. We evacuated the village in the darkness of night. The sounds of crying, the sounds of screaming... The fear of when and where they would shoot at us. I will never forget that fear, that misery we endured.’
Following in His Martyr Brother's Footsteps
Thanks to successful operations by security forces, Gabar Mountain, now free from the threat of terrorism, has become Türkiye's most productive oil field on a daily basis. Nadir Bilik also began working in oil production in the land of his birth as an operations worker within TPIC.
No Fear, Only Hope
Noting that drilling rigs now stand in the area where his brother was martyred, Bilik said, "My brother sacrificed his life for this land. Where my brother was martyred, the Naim Süleymanoğlu rig is now operating. Right now, the sounds of drilling rigs are rising in Gabar, not the sounds of guns or conflict. There is no fear in these lands anymore. There is production, there is hope. I am proud."
The Most Concrete Example of a Terror-Free Türkiye
Energy and Natural Resources Minister Alparslan Bayraktar also shared a video on social media about Nadir Bilik's life story, saying, "Gabar is the most concrete example of our ideal of a terror-free Türkiye. Where once the sound of guns echoed, today the sound of production resonates. Every barrel of oil we produce symbolizes the strength of an independent Türkiye. It is no longer the darkness of terrorism that shines in Gabar, but the light of labor and hope."