The soldier commemorated in the fountain's inscription was the first victim of PKK attacks in 1983.
He came from a nearby village and was only 20 years old. Behind the fountain you may make out
many piles of stones between the grass that form old graves.
The PKK was formed in an effort to establish linguistic, cultural, and political rights for Turkey's Kurdish minority. However, the full-scale insurgency did not begin until 15 August 1984, when the PKK announced a Kurdish uprising. Between 1984 and 2012, an estimated 40,000 had died, the vast majority of whom were Kurdish civilians. Both sides were accused of numerous human rights abuses.
The rise of Islamic State on Turkey's southern border illuminated diverging interests and ignited new tensions. In response to Islamic State's 2015 Suruç bombing on Turkish soil, the Ceylanpınar incidents saw the killing of two Turkish police officers by suspected PKK militants and the return to open conflict. Subsequently, the conflict resulted in about 8,000 killed in Turkey alone, with about 20,000 more in Syria and Iraq due to Turkish military operations.
New peace process discussions began in 2024. In early 2025, Öcalan called PKK to disarm.[103] On 12 May 2025, the PKK announced its full dissolution to favor political means.[104] However, Turkey's military will continue operations against the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) in regions where it remains active, despite the group's announcement of its dissolution.