[citation needed] He was born 1939 in Kessab, a town in northwestern Syria close to the Turkish border[2] to a family of Turkmen origin.

The monument, depicting two human figures reaching out hands to each other, stood 30 m (98 ft) high on Kazıktepe Hill across from the ancient Castle of Kars outside of the city and would have been visible from neighboring Armenia when completed.

[2] It was commissioned by Naif Alibeyoğlu [tr], the former mayor of Kars, as a gesture of reconciliation in Armenia–Turkey relations following a 2009 accord to establish formal diplomatic recognition between the two.

[4][5] Erdoğan insists that this was merely a question of aesthetics, yet according to The Economist the demolition could have been an attempt to appeal to nationalist sentiment ahead of the 2011 general election.

[citation needed] The figure in this memorial, which honors those who refuse to fight in unjust wars, is carved in negative relief, a technique that Aksoy employed in later work.