Akre mayor says over 2,000 torches prepared for Newroz
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ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - The town of Akre in Duhok province, considered the capital of Newroz, has prepared over 2,000 torches for the festival with tens of thousands expected to flock to the area to celebrate, its district mayor said Saturday.
'Newroz preparations in Akre started more than a month ago. Most of the preparations have been made and will be completed two days before Newroz,' Dilawar Bozo, Akre's district mayor, told Rudaw. 'More than 2,000 torches have been prepared.'
With Newroz falling in the holy month of Ramadan this year, Bozo said that celebrations will be different. 'We will have different activities, and artists and religious singers will participate in the ceremony.'
Kurdistan Region Prime Minister Masrour Barzani will also participate, and a large tent and suhoor - the meal consumed by Muslims before fasting during Ramadan - will be prepared, according to Bozo.
Kurds from all over the Kurdistan Region traditionally gather in the town of Akre to honor the ages-long tradition of lighting fires to welcome the New Year on the first day of spring.
Hundreds of thousands of people from the Kurdistan Region, as well as Kurdish regions in Turkey, Iran, and Syria, will celebrate the eve of Newroz on Wednesday, also symbolizing a day of freedom from tyranny and resistance.
'This year we have built another road to the mountain, one that goes up and one that goes down, but in two different directions,' Bozo added, predicting that over 70,000 tourists will visit for the festival.
Kurds celebrate Newroz on March 21-23 by picnicking in the countryside and lighting bonfires with their families and loved ones. The occasion is known as the Kurdish New Year.
Celebrations and festivities are held across the Kurdistan Region with hundreds of thousands of Kurds dancing in their colorful and traditional Kurdish clothes.
Solin Hamadamin contributed to this report.
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