Nation gears up for vibrant Nevruz celebrations

DİYARBAKIR

Thousands of people have completed their preparations for Nevruz, a traditional festival marking the arrival of spring, with engaging rituals and vibrant events across Türkiye.

The nation celebrates the event, celebrated in mid-to-late March as the first day of spring in Kurdish, Iranian and Eurasian traditions with colorful festivities, on March 21 this year.

The ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) will hold a Nevruz event on this date, set to take place at Istanbul’s Haliç congress center, with President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan in attendance, the spokesperson Ömer Çelik announced. He emphasized that the event would symbolize the country’s commitment to a “terror-free Türkiye.”

In the event, Erdoğan will light the Nevruz fire — as people light fires and jump over them three times to make wishes on this auspicious day.

In the southeastern city of Diyarbakır, Nevruz festival will be organized by the Peoples' Equality and Democracy Party (DEM), featuring the burning of 3 tons of wood as a celebration for the much-anticipated event.

In a bid to ensure stability during the event, authorities heightened security measures across the province, including the installation of 10 kilometers of barriers. With around 10,000 police officers assigned to ensure safety, attendees will undergo three-stage security checks at six main entrance points before entering the event space.

To prevent unauthorized access, a 3-meter-high wire fence was also placed in front of the stage, aiming to avoid a repeat of last year's disturbances when some officials were injured by stones that were thrown.

Meanwhile, in the western city of Manisa, the 485th International Mesir Paste Festival coincided with Nevruz celebrations this year, too, offering a unique blend of traditional festivities.

The festival, a UNESCO-recognized Intangible Cultural Heritage tradition, will take place right after the Nevruz events. The Nevruz festivities in the city will feature rituals such as jumping over the Nevruz fire, folk dance performances, a grand parade and a tree-planting event.

This year’s mesir paste festival will also kick off with a lively parade, with tons of specially made sweet paste, containing around 41 different spices, raining down from 41 different points atop the Sultan Mosque's, one of the city's iconic monuments, domes and minarets.