Thursday, September 10, 2015

‘Lynching Campaign’ Targets Kurds in Turkey, HDP Offices Attacked

In a Sept. 8 press release, the Kurdish National Congress (KNK) said that coordinated mob attacks and lynchings on Sept. 6-8 targeted hundreds of Kurdish civilians in Western Turkey, injuring many and killing some.
According to the KNK, the Turkish police participated in some of the attacks against the civilians, who have sought safety in the offices of the pro-Kurdish People’s Democratic Party (HDP).

“The mobs are organizing themselves across social media, forming groups and attacking homes known to belong to Kurdish families,” read a part of the KNK statement, which claims that attacks on Kurdish homes, civilians, and neighborhoods are still ongoing and that hundreds of thousands of Kurds are currently in direct danger.

Over the past few days, there have also been several attacks on the HDP headquarters across Turkey, according to the KNK. “Attacks on 128 HDP offices have occurred with HDP signs and slogans ripped off and replaced with the Turkish flag. Other offices have been set on fire.”

The KNK has called on the international community to urge Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to “end its violent, racist, and divisive policies” in light of the coordinated attacks.

Demirtas: We are facing a lynching campaign

HDP co-chair Selahattin Demirtas accused the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) of orchestrating the mob attacks and of forcing the country into a civil war, reported the BBC.

“We [Kurds] are facing a campaign of lynching,” said Demirtas, who accused both President Erdogan and Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu of taking “the decision to start this war and intensify it.”

Speaking to reporters on Sept. 8, Demirtas said the ruling regime had manufactured the crisis after losing their majority in the June general election. “We want to stop young people dying and let the public decide the future at the ballot box,” he was quoted as saying by Today’s Zaman.

Garo Paylan, one of three Armenian Members of Parliament in Turkey and an outspoken critic of the ruling regime, said that authorities stood idly by as his party’s (HDP) offices were attacked. “Police are just watching…what’s being broken there is our hope of living together,” Paylan told the BBC.

Diyarbakir’s Surp Giragos Armenian Church Suffers Minor Damages

One source from Diyarbakir (Dikranagerd) described the situation as an ongoing war in the city. Speaking to the Armenian Weekly, the source explained how due to the imposed curfew and ongoing violence, residents were forced to remain in their workplaces and homes for days...............http://asbarez.com/139655/lynching-campaign-targets-kurds-in-turkey-hdp-offices-attacked/

10/9/15
--
-
Related:

 -

3 comments :

  1. Turkish election ‘impossible’ due to unrest: HDP....

    Rising violence in southeast Turkey following the collapse of a ceasefire between the government and Kurdish insurgents will make it difficult to hold an election due on November 1, the head of the pro-Kurdish parliamentary opposition said on Wednesday.

    Turkey's mainly Kurdish southeast has seen almost daily clashes between militants from the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) and security forces since July.

    “It is becoming impossible to hold an election given the security situation in the region,” Selahattin Demirtas, the head of the HDP, told a news conference in the southeastern city of Diyarbakir.

    “We want an election to be held and we are not saying an election can’t be held, but we want the conditions in the region to be improved for an election.”.................alarabiya.net by Reuters
    10/9/15

    ReplyDelete
  2. Turkey Kurds: Kurdish MPs in new attempt to march to Cizre...

    Leaders of Turkey's pro-Kurdish (HDP) opposition party say that security forces have blocked them again from reaching the city of Cizre on foot.

    HDP co-leader Selahattin Demirtas and colleagues had vowed to reach the city through the mountains - after their convoy was stopped on Wednesday.

    The army has been pursuing a security operation in Cizre which rights groups say has cost several civilian lives.

    Prosecutors are investigating Mr Demirtas for insulting the president.

    They want to have the MP stripped of his parliamentary immunity.

    Violence between the Turkish army and the militant Kurdish PKK has escalated since a ceasefire collapsed in July.

    Turkey is to hold new elections in November after inconclusive polls in June.....BBC

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Turkey Kurds: 30 dead in Cizre violence as MPs' march blocked...

      At least 30 people have died in clashes in the Turkish city of Cizre since a military operation began there last week, Turkey's interior ministry says.

      The ministry says most of the dead were Kurdish militants but the pro-Kurdish Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) says 20 civilians were killed in the violence.

      Locals say Cizre has been "under siege" since the military imposed a curfew.

      On Thursday police stopped a delegation of HDP leaders who were trying to reach the south-eastern city on foot.

      The group includes the party's leader Selahattin Demirtas and 30 members of parliament, who say they want to draw attention to what is happening in the mainly Kurdish area.

      They were intercepted by police near Idil, 28km (17 miles) from Cizre.....BBC

      Delete

Only News

Featured Post

“The U.S. must stop supporting terrorists who are destroying Syria and her people" : US Congresswoman, Tulsi Gabbard

US Congresswoman, Tulsi Gabbard, recently visited Syria, and even met with President Bashar Al-Assad. She also visited the recently libe...

Blog Widget by LinkWithin