A Geoheritage Window into the Silurian–Neogene Evolution of the Taurus–Zagros Orogenic Belt (Northern Margin of the Arabian Plate): The Hazro Anticline, Türkiye

Abstract The Hazro Anticline is located on the northern edge of the Arabian Plate in southeastern Anatolia, Türkiye. Along the anticline axis, autochthonous units of the Arabian Plate and allochthonous units of the Tethys Ocean, representing the time period from Silurian to Neogene, are exposed. The Diyarbakir Basin, where the anticline is located, is an important oil producing region in Türkiye. Hazro Anticline is an important area where the source and reservoir rocks that produce these oils are exposed. With this characteristic, it is a location that is constantly in the focus of geoscientists. This study presents the first systematic geoheritage inventory of the Hazro Anticline, identifying and evaluating 21 geostops across six thematic categories — petroleum geoheritage, tectonics, paleontology, stratigraphy and sedimentology, geomorphology and cultural geology — using the frameworks of ProGEO (1998), Brilha (2016) and Kazancı et al. (2015). These localities not only contribute to elucidating the evolution of the Taurus–Zagros Orogenic Belt but also shed light on the paleogeographic changes that developed on the Arabian Plate. Among the important localities identified in the Hazro Anticline, which has been selected as one of the most important geosites of Türkiye; Silurian-Permian stratigraphic section, Lower Cretaceous stratigraphic section, Upper Cretaceous-Paleocene lagoonal-fluvial deposit, Dadaş strike-slip fault, Hazro thrust fault, Eocene and Lower Miocene unconformity, Lower-Middle Miocene fossiliferous reef limestones as well as sinkholes developed within the Miocene deposits. On the eastern side of the anticline, the historic Malabadi Bridge over the Batman River and the karstic caves within Eocene carbonates (Hasuni Caves) represent significant points along the anticline route from a cultural geology perspective. In addition, the South Hazro and Varınca oil fields, along with the Handof and Taşpınar gas wells located within the geosite, have been recognized not only as some of Türkiye’s most important hydrocarbon wells but also as elements of Petroleum geoheritage due to their economic significance and impact on social development.