epa10015452 Attractions of closed Ankapark rotten in Ankara, Turkey, 13 June 2022 (issued 16 June 2022). Ankapark/Wonderland Eurasia was opened on 20 March 2019 with the claim of being 'Europe's largest theme park'. Ankapark, which was announced to have a capacity of approximately 25 thousand people, was aiming to host five million domestic and foreign tourists in the first year. The amusement park, which cost more than 801 million dollars, was one of the biggest projects of Ankara Metropolitan Municipality Mayor Melih Gokcek. In February 2020, it was closed with a loss of 111 million TYL (over six million Euro). Attractions and toys were left to rot since three years. The 'corruption case' against former AK Party mayor Melih Gokcek continues. The new Mayor of Ankara, Mansur Yavas is a member of the main opposition party CHP (Republican People's Party). The Ankara Metropolitan Municipality, which is still ongoing a legal process to take it back, announced that the irregularities in the privatization of dinosaur statues, imported trees, clocks and robots among several other issues will be added to the 'page of wasted money.' EPA-EFE/SEDAT SUNA ATTENTION: This Image is part of a PHOTO SET

epa09988415 Protesters shout slogans as they clash with Turkish riot police during a rally on the occasion of the 9th anniversary of the Gezi Park protests near Taksim Square, Istanbul, Turkey, 31 May 2022. A total of seven people lost their lives in partly violent protests that began on 31 May 2013 against plans to replace Taksim Gezi Park with a shopping mall. EPA-EFE/SEDAT SUNA

epa09906481 Ecumenical patriarch Bartholomew I, spiritual leader of Greek Orthodox world, holds Emir Ergen, a seven-month-old Turkish-Ukrainian boy, during the Easter ceremony at St George Church in Istanbul, Turkey, 24 April 2022. Orthodox Christian believers marked the Holy Week day of Easter in celebration of the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus Christ. The Eastern Orthodox world celebrates Easter according to the old Julian calendar. EPA-EFE/SEDAT SUNA

epa09857767 Relatives of a Ukrainian soldier who died in Mykolaiv attend his funeral ceremony at the Western Cemetery in Odesa, Ukraine, 29 March 2022. Russian troops entered Ukraine on 24 February resulting in fighting and destruction in the country, and triggering a series of severe economic sanctions on Russia. EPA-EFE/SEDAT SUNA

epa09857741 Relatives of a Ukrainian soldier attend his funeral ceremony in Odesa, Ukraine, 29 March 2022. Russian troops entered Ukraine on 24 February resulting in fighting and destruction in the country, and triggering a series of severe economic sanctions on Russia. EPA-EFE/SEDAT SUNA

epa09852772 A Ukrainian woman lights a candle while people pray inside the St. Elijahs Monastery during the Sunday service in the southern Ukrainian city of Odesa, in Ukraine, 27 March 2022. Russian troops entered Ukraine on 24 February resulting in fighting and destruction in the country, and triggering a series of severe economic sanctions on Russia by Western countries. EPA-EFE/SEDAT SUNA

epaselect epa09851007 A Ukrainian soldier guards in front of the Odesa National Academic Theatre of Opera and Ballet and one of the city's symbols, behind a heavy barricade in Odesa, Ukraine, 26 March 2022. Russian troops entered Ukraine on 24 February resulting in fighting and destruction in the country, and triggering a series of severe economic sanctions on Russia by Western countries. EPA-EFE/SEDAT SUNA

epaselect epa09849370 A three-days-old baby Katerina cries in room at the maternity hospital, in the southern Ukrainian city of Mykolaiv, Ukraine, 25 March 2022. Russian troops entered Ukraine on 24 February resulting in fighting and destruction in the country, and triggering a series of severe economic sanctions on Russia by Western countries. EPA-EFE/SEDAT SUNA

epa09849344 Ukrainian soldiers are seen in a trench as they take their positions in the southern Ukrainian city of Mykolaiv, Ukraine, 25 March 2022. Russian troops entered Ukraine on 24 February resulting in fighting and destruction in the country, and triggering a series of severe economic sanctions on Russia by Western countries. EPA-EFE/SEDAT SUNA

epa09842465 General view of the Passage Hotel with barricades is comprised with a post card of the building before the Russian invasion, in south Ukrainian city of Odesa, Ukraine, 22 March 2022. Russian troops entered Ukraine on 24 February resulting in fighting and destruction in the country, and triggering a series of severe economic sanctions on Russia by Western countries. EPA-EFE/SEDAT SUNA

epa09840903 Locals of Odessa learn war tactics and how to handle weapons, in south Ukrainian city of Odesa, in Ukraine, 21 March 2022. Russian troops entered Ukraine on 24 February prompting the country's president to declare martial law and triggering a series of announcements by Western countries to impose severe economic sanctions on Russia. EPA-EFE/SEDAT SUNA

epa09838633 Oleh Kyshynsky (L) kisses his wife Iryna inside a train, next to family members, as they say goodbye at the central railway station in the southern Ukrainian port city of Odesa, Ukraine, 20 March 2022. Oleh Kyshynsky and his family come from the Ukrainian city of Kherson, which has been occupied by Russian forces. His family is leaving the country and going to meet their relatives in Germany through Poland. Oleh is expected to go back to Kherson to volunteer and look after his friend's wife and child. Before the Russian invasion of Ukraine started, he worked as a car mechanic. On the day Oleh hugged his children and wife before their departure at the Odesa train station, and promised them that they will be together again. EPA-EFE/SEDAT SUNA

epaselect epa09606373 A displaced Syrian girl looks out from her tent at Abu Makki camp in Sarmada district, on the outskirts of Idlib, Syria, 26 November 2021 (issued 27 November 2021). Since 2011, the Turkish Red Crescent (or Kizilay) has delivered 55 thousand trucks of aid materials into Syria. Some 111 thousand tents, eight million food parcels, 116 million bread parcels, 2.7 million hygiene kits, 2.5 million stationery materials, 65 million clothing and blankets have been distributed. Around 20,000 packets of bread are produced daily in Turkish Red Crescent's bakeries and delivered to those in need. Aid materials sent in this context have so far amounted to 3.5 billion Turkish lira (about 281 million US dollar). There are 12 camps and 14 orphanages in the Idlib region. In the Mashat Ruhin region of Idlib's Sarmada district, the Turkish Red Crescent has planned to build 1,228 brick houses, of which, more than 748 have been completed. According to the United Nations UN), 13.4 million people inside Syria are in need of some form of humanitarian assistance, including six million in acute need. More than 12 million were struggling to find enough food each day and half a million children were chronically malnourished. EPA-EFE/SEDAT SUNA

epa09831579 A Ukrainian refugee boy looks from inside a volunteer tent as he waits to cross the Palanca border gate to Moldova, in Ukraine, 17 March 2022. Moldova has until 13 March received about 299,573 refugees, some 198,897 left to other EU countries and 100,676 chose to stay. EPA-EFE/SEDAT SUNA

epaselect epa09513271 British Formula One driver Lewis Hamilton of Mercedes-AMG Petronas in action during the second practice session of the 2021 Formula One Grand Prix of Turkey at the Intercity Istanbul Park circuit in Istanbul, Turkey, 08 October 2021. The 2021 Formula One Grand Prix of Turkey will take place on 10 October. EPA-EFE/SEDAT SUNA

epa09509423 Female Firefighter Ceyda Cirik (L) at work during her shift while women and children walk past her fire truck in Basaksehir district, Istanbul, Turkey, 28 September 2021. (Issued 06 October 2021). The historic 100-year-old firefighting department in Istanbul, since the summer, has welcomed women in Turkey, a majority Muslim country ruled by the Islamic conservative AKP, to its ranks. “When I grow up I want to be a firefighter” was not something any of these 37 women ever said when they were girls. Even though there have been female firefighters in some towns since 1988, seeing a woman wielding an axe and hose in Turkey is still extremely rare. "It's not considered a woman's job, but since I was little I used to do things that are seen as boys' jobs, so my family didn't see anything unusual about it," says Ceyda Cirik, 22, at the fire station in Basaksehir, a suburb of Istanbul. She has just returned from an operation in a burned-out factory, along with her colleagues Esra Ücler and Rüveyda Tös. The three of them are part of a team with about 10 men who, after initially viewing the new recruits with suspicion, soon got used to the novelty. Being a firefighter has a long tradition in Istanbul, which was formerly built almost entirely of wood. The volunteer fire departments, the so-called 'tulumbacilar' of the 18th and 19th centuries, with their iconic uniform of jacket, stilts and sash, became an image of masculinity and courage. The offer of 50 vacancies for female firefighters - 37 of which only could be filled, as not all candidates passed the exams and physical tests - is quite the political statement from the Istanbul mayor's office, which since 2019 has been in the hands of the social democratic CHP party, the AKP's main rival. EPA-EFE/SEDAT SUNA

epa09479031 Syrian Kurdish wrestler Adnan Osman (back) 12 years old and his friend Yusuf Mert Kaya training at the Avcılar Municipality Sports Club in Istanbul, Turkey, 07 September 2021. Adnan Osman, who had to leave his country after the start of the Syrian war, came to the Turkish border with his family 8 years ago. Adnan was born in a Kurdish village close to Aleppo and started this difficult journey when he was 3 years old. His father managed to bring his family to Gaziantep, the border city of Turkey, by selling all their assets in their village, and they stayed in Gaziantep for a while. Adnan and his family then started a new journey and came to Istanbul. It didn't take long for Adnan, started primary school, to meet wrestling. Adnan participated in the wrestler auditions held at the school and met his current trainer Yasin Günes when he was 8 years old. Adnan later became a regular wrestler of Avcılar Municipality Sports Club. He won a total of 15 medals in the last 4 years. He also won medals in Greco-Roman and freestyle at the Turkish Wrestling Championships twice. Speaking to Epa, Adnan said he wants to be a great wrestler in the future. "I want to win championships on behalf of Turkey," Adnan said. EPA-EFE/SEDAT SUNA ATTENTION: This Image is part of a PHOTO SET

epa09623526 Migrants from Afghanistan are seen in the house which smugglers used as a secret house as they detained by Turkish security forces during an operation in the border city of Van, Turkey, 25 August 2021. EPA-EFE/SEDAT SUNA

epa09371860 A giant puppet of a young refugee girl Amal walks on street with Syrian refugees children in Gaziantep, Turkey, 27 July 2021. The 3.5 meter-tall artwork of a young Syrian refugee child will walk across Turkey, Greece, Italy, France, Switzerland, Germany, Belgium and the UK to focus attention on the urgent needs of young refugees. A giant puppet of a young refugee girl is part of 'The Walk,' an art initiative that will travel 8,000 kilometers in support of refugees. EPA-EFE/SEDAT SUNA

epa09623544 Turkish police block women as they demonstrate against Turkey's decision to withdraw from the Istanbul Convention, in Istanbul, Turkey, 01 July 2021. Turkish President Erdogan pulled Turkey out of the international human rights treaty aiming to protect women from violence. The Convention on Preventing and Combating Violence against Women and Domestic Violence was drafted by the Council of Europe in 2011 and signed by 45 European countries and the European Union (EU) to date. EPA-EFE/SEDAT SUNA

epa09623482 A group of people rest under a bridge near a railway in the Turkish city of Van after crossing the Iran-Turkey border, 02 June 2021. People smuggled into the country wait for days to be transferred by smugglers to Diyarbakir city to reach west Turkey. The city of Van, on the Turkish-Iranian border, is one of the points at which human smuggling can be easily spotted. Smugglers charge between 600 or 1,000 US dollars per person, depending on the security situation at the border. EPA-EFE/SEDAT SUNA

epa09618959 An Afghan boy hides inside a sewer pipe made of concrete next to a railway near Van city after crossing the Iran-Turkey border, 02 June 2021. Illegal immigrants and non-recognized refugees wait for days for their smugglers to transfer them to Diyarbakir city to reach West Turkey. The city of Van, on the Turkish-Iranian border, is one of the points at which human smuggling can be easily spotted. Smugglers charge between 600 or 1,000 US dollars per person, depending on the security situation at the border. EPA-EFE/SEDAT SUNA ATTENTION: For the full PHOTO ESSAY text please see Advisory Notices epa09323103 and epa09323104

epaselect epa09810554 Female protesters push against police shields as they try to cross as they march to Taksim Square during a rally marking the International Women's Day in Istanbul, Turkey, 08 March 2022. International Women's Day is celebrated globally on 08 March to promote women's rights and equality. According to the 'We'll Stop Femicide' social platform, 280 women were killed through gender violence and hundreds assaulted by men in 2021, in Turkey. EPA-EFE/SEDAT SUNA

epa09789109 People protest against Russian aggression on Ukraine in Istanbul, Turkey, 27 February 2022. Russian troops entered Ukraine on 24 February prompting the country's president to declare martial law. The Turkish president on 23 February told his Russian counterpart that Turkey did not recognise Russia's move on Ukraine's sovereignty, the Turkish Presidency said. EPA-EFE/SEDAT SUNA

epaselect epa09753389 A female protestor holds a pan as she tries to cross police barricade during a demonstration against high bills and economic crisis in Istanbul, Turkey, 13 February 2022. EPA-EFE/SEDAT SUNA

epa09727134 An Uyghur man wears a face mask with the Uyghur flag during a rally against the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympic Games over China's treatment of the Uyghur Muslim ethnic group, near the Chinese consulate in Istanbul, Turkey, 04 February 2022. EPA-EFE/SEDAT SUNA

epaselect epa09680254 A woman wears a protective facemask and goggles to shop at Eminent local Bazaar on a rainy day, in Istanbul, Turkey, 12 January 2022. Turkey has recorded 74,266 new COVID-19 cases in last 24 hours, its highest daily figure of the pandemic. EPA-EFE/SEDAT SUNA

epaselect epa09669344 Greek Orthodox young priests at St. George's Church during the traditional Epiphany Day ceremony in Istanbul, Tu​rkey, 06 January 2022. EPA-EFE/SEDAT SUNA

epaselect epa09668018 People wearing face mask walk in front of a Turkish flag in Istanbul, Turkey, 05 January 2022. In Turkey, there have been 9,596,779 confirmed cases of COVID-19 with 82,795 deaths, the World Health Organization (WHO) reported. According to the weekly data of cases by provinces shared by Minister of Health Koca, the number of COVID-19 cases per 100 thousand people was 303.51 in Istanbul in the week of 18 to 24 December 2021. EPA-EFE/SEDAT SUNA