A forest fire broke out in a restricted military area on Mount Gabar in the Kurdish province of Şırnak on Thursday afternoon. Strong winds caused the flames to spread rapidly to surrounding forest areas.

The affected area is closed to the public for “security reasons” and may only be entered by military personnel, so-called “village guards” and employees of the Turkish state oil company TPAO, which is searching for raw materials in the region.

Thousands of trees were reduced to ashes, and many animals died in the fire, which was brought under control only after 11 hours.

Mount Gabar is considered rich in natural resources and has long been the scene of Turkish warfare in Kurdistan. It is not uncommon for fires to be deliberately set by the army, as the Turkish state has been systematically targeting areas for decades in order to make them uninhabitable and drive the Kurdish population out of their villages. In recent years, the state-owned TPAO has also significantly expanded its oil exploration activities in Gabar and other mountainous areas in Şırnak. Environmental organizations have long criticized the destruction of nature through deforestation, military infrastructure measures, and fires.