district
A district is a type of administrative division that in some countries is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or county, counties, several municipality, municip ...
of
Balıkesir Province
Balıkesir Province () is a Provinces of Turkey, province and Metropolitan municipalities in Turkey, metropolitan municipality in northwestern Turkey with coastlines on both the Sea of Marmara and the Aegean Sea, Aegean. Its area is 14,583 km ...
, Turkey. Its area is 652 km2, and its population is 37,724 (2022). It is famous for its production of soap and dairy products.
The highway from
Istanbul
Istanbul is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, constituting the country's economic, cultural, and historical heart. With Demographics of Istanbul, a population over , it is home to 18% of the Demographics ...
to
Ä°zmir
Ä°zmir is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, third most populous city in Turkey, after Istanbul and Ankara. It is on the Aegean Sea, Aegean coast of Anatolia, and is the capital of Ä°zmir Province. In 2024, the city of Ä°zmir had ...
passes through Susurluk. In Turkey Susurluk is known for its 'tost' (''susurluk tostu'') - a toasted cheese sandwich with tomato paste, and for its foamy
ayran
Ayran ( ) is a cold savory yogurt-based beverage that is consumed across Central Asia, and the Balkans, in Turkey and Iran. The principal ingredients are yogurt, water and salt. Herbs such as mint may be optionally added. Some varieties are ...
Originally, the place where Susurluk is now located was an empty area of forest and swamp belonging to
Karasi Bey
Kara Isa Beg better Known as Karasi Bey (; died ), attested as Carases by Nicephorus Gregoras, was the eponymous Bey of the Karasids in northwestern Anatolia. Karasi and his father Kalam are thought to have seized the frontier of the Byzantine E ...
. Under Bey's grandchildren, it was managed as a farm called Susığırlık. Later, in 1634, with raiders coming from Karaman, Hacı Hatip Oğulları, settled here. While Susığırlık was only a farm, it began to serve as a rest stop for caravans passing to Bursa and Istanbul. Later, it became crowded with Bulgarian and Caucasian immigrants who migrated to Anatolia during the 1858 and 1878 Turkish-Russian war and Turkmen tribes that were later settled by
Ahmed Vefik Pasha
Ahmed Vefik Pasha () (3 July 1823 2 April 1891) was an Ottoman statesman, diplomat, scholar, playwright, and translator during the Tanzimat and First Constitutional Era periods. He was commissioned with top-rank governmental duties, including pr ...
.
1996 scandal
On 3 November 1996 a
car crash
A traffic collision, also known as a motor vehicle collision, or car crash, occurs when a vehicle collides with another vehicle, pedestrian, animal, road debris, or other moving or stationary obstruction, such as a tree, pole or building. T ...
in the town made news headlines as the dead and injured included a parliamentary deputy, a right-wing gang leader, a former beauty queen and a senior police officer.
The resulting political and social turmoil has come to be known as the
Susurluk scandal
The Susurluk scandal () or Susurluk accident (), was a 1996 political scandal in Turkey that exposed a close relationship between the Turkish government, the ultra-nationalistic paramilitary Grey Wolves (organization), Grey Wolves organization an ...
, and the accident was described as definite proof of a link between politics, organized crime and the bureaucracy, known in Turkish as the ''derin devlet'' ("
deep state
Deep state is a term used for (real or imagined) potential, unauthorized and often secret networks of power operating independently of a State (polity), state's political leadership in pursuit of their own agendas and goals.
Although the term ori ...
").
Several people, including three former special forces members, were convicted of illegal activities and served prison terms.
Composition
There are 54
neighbourhoods
A neighbourhood (Commonwealth English) or neighborhood (American English) is a geographically localized community within a larger town, city, suburb or rural area, sometimes consisting of a single street and the buildings lining it. Neighbourh ...
Bozen
Bolzano ( ; ; or ) is the capital city of South Tyrol (officially the province of Bolzano), Northern Italy. With a population of 108,245, Bolzano is also by far the largest city in South Tyrol and the third largest in historical Tyrol. The g ...
Karaköy
Karaköy (), the modern name for the old Galata, is a commercial quarter in the Beyoğlu district of Istanbul, Turkey, located at the northern part of the Golden Horn mouth on the European side of Bosphorus.
Karaköy is one of the oldest and mo ...
ReÅŸadiye
Reşadiye is a town of Tokat Province, Turkey, located within the Cappadocia land within the Kızılırmak arc in the central part of the Black Sea region. It is the seat of Reşadiye District.Sülecik
* Sultançayırı
* Sultaniye
* Ãœmiteli
* Yağcı
* Yahyaköy
* Yaylaçayırı
* Yeni
* Yıldız