With the city devastated by the February 2023 quake that killed 55,000 people, the luxury Ronesans Residence apartment bloc quickly became a high-profile symbol of the construction malpractices at the heart of the tragedy.
Built in 2013 and sold as "a corner of paradise", the complex's abrupt collapse like a house of cards prompted a criminal case against eight defendants which had its third hearing on Thursday.
Among its celebrity residents was former Ghana international footballer Christian Atsu, one of hundreds who died when it collapsed.
Days later, police arrested the building's contractor at Istanbul airport.
Hafize Acikgoz, 43, who lost her husband and three children there, said she had "zero hope" those responsible would be properly punished.
"I don't have any faith in justice," she told AFP, saying she thought their apartment block, which towered over those around it, was the safest in the area.
"They stood tall and ours collapsed. My family is under the ground and I am like the living dead," she said, her eyes full of tears.
Lawyer Emine Candarli from the western city of Izmir, also lost family in Ronesans, finding the bodies of her sister, her brother-in-law and their two kids under the ruins 11 days after the quake.
"It's not the quake that killed my sister and her family but the contractors who sold the flats as safe and sound," she told AFP by phone.
Almost all the rubble from the complex was cleared away in the weeks after the quake.
AFP journalists visiting the area on Thursday found the site completely flattened.
- 'I want you to pay' -
The eight suspects are charged with "causing death through conscious negligence" with prosecutors seeking 22 years and six months for each one.
Among them is contractor Mehmet Yasar Coskun who pleaded not guilty.
"What would happen if you loaded 30 tonnes into a 10-tonne capacity truck?" he asked the judge on Thursday, via video link.
"This is what exactly happened to our building."
The judge on Thursday ordered the release from pre-trial detention of Onder Artun, who was responsible for overseeing the project.
Three others are still in custody while another suspect remains at large.
The next hearing is scheduled for January 24.
Antakya is a mountain-rimmed cradle of Muslim and Christian civilisation, known throughout history as Antioch.
In the old town, cranes towered over the rooftops, working non-stop to advance the rebuilding efforts.
Antakya's downtown bazaar, which was ravaged by the quake, was bustling again with a number of shops and bakeries reopened.
Some apartment buildings that were still standing had warnings on their walls reading: "Court case in process: do not demolish".
- 'I will never forgive them' -
In an emotional testimony, Cemile Incili told the court how she was trapped under the rubble for two days.
Although she was rescued, they never found her sister and nephew.
"Have you ever said goodbye to your loved ones?" she asked.
"You are all alive. I want you to pay a price," she said, staring directly into the eyes of the suspects in the courtroom.
Even if the defendants receive the maximum sentence, the families say it will never be enough.
"I will never forgive those responsible," said Kismet Kosar, 41, who lost her two sisters, their husbands and two nephews at Ronesans.
"I will follow this case until my dying breath ... 22 years for the suspects is not enough," she told AFP.
"We are dying every day."
The contractors and developers insist all permits were correctly issued after studies by the municipality and the oversight company.
But to their dismay, no municipal official has been held to account as that would require permission from the interior ministry.
"I have tremendous pain which will never be eased," said Candarli, whose sister moved from Izmir to Ronesans after getting married.
"My sister was my other half. We were born on the same day even though I was four years older," she said.
"She was my birthday gift".
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