Turkish authorities arrested twelve people in the southeast on terrorism charges

Turkish police have detained 18 people, including politicians of pro-Kurdish parties, over terrorism charges in an operation based in Turkey’s southeastern province of Diyarbakır, T24 reported.

Police raided the homes of the politicians in the early hours of Saturday, T24 said, detaining many politicians, including former deputy for the Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) Ayla Akat Ata, and HDP’s sister party the Democratic Regions Party (DBP)’s former co-chairs Mehmet Arslan ve Gülcihan Şimşek.

Twelve out of the 18 detainees, including Şimşek and Arslan, were arrested on terrorism charges by the court they were referred to, while the remaining six, were released on probation, T24 said.

A 2018 report showed that almost one-third of the HDP’s members had been detained since a peace process between Turkey and the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) collapsed in 2015, and thousands of HDP members remain in prisons – making up a significant portion of Turkey’s 50,000 prisoners who face terrorism charges.

Source: Ahval News