Journalists, Politicians Taken into Custody

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Over 100 people, among whom are also journalists and politicians, were detained in house raids conducted by the police as part of a Diyarbakır-based operation that was launched in eight provinces today (October 9).

Journalists Abdurrahman Gök and Esra Solin Dal from Mezopotamya Agency, Kibriye Evren from Jin News and Semiha Alankuş from the Yeni Yaşam (New Life) newspaper as well as politicians Mehmet Şerif Camcı, who is the Diyarbakır Provincial Co-Chair of the Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP), and Ruken Kılınç, who is a Permanent Assembly Member of the Democratic Society Congress (DTK), have been detained.

Search in the houses of journalists

As reported by Mezopotamya Agency, the police conducted a raid with long barrelled weapons to the house of journalist Abdurrahman Gök, who photographed the moment when the university student Kemal Kurkut was shot to death by the police during the Newroz celebrations in Turkey's southeastern province of Diyarbakır in 2017.

In the raid, police officers forced Gök and his housemate to lie on the floor facing downwards and searched the house for a long period of time. The police seized some books, magazines and equipments of Gök in the raid.

A police raid was also launched to the house of journalist Ömer Çelik, who lives in Diyarbakır. In the raid, during which Çelik was not at home, the door of the house was broken down and a search was conducted in his absence.

As part of the same operation, journalist Semiha Alankuş was detained at her house in İstanbul. It has been stated that Alankuş will be taken to Diyarbakır.

Water cannon vehicle in front of HDP building

Among the ones who were taken into custody in Diyarbakır, the following names have been learnt so far: Nevriye Gül, Neslihan Karacadağ, Figen Ekti, Hüseyin Kaya, Elif Haran, Aygül Alagündüz, Ahmet Aslan, Leyla Tekdağ, Mehmet Nur Özdemir, Eylem Ceylan.

The detained people have been taken to the Anti-Terror Branch of Diyarbakır Security Directorate. The grounds for detentiona have still been unknown.

Armored vehicles and Anti-Riot Water Cannon Vehicles (TOMA) have been stationed in front of the HDP Provincial Office in Diyarbakır.

In a statement released by the Ministry of Interior, it has been announced that "as part of the works to decipher and prevent the activities of PKK/KCK (Kurdistan Workers Party/ Kurdistan Communities Union) terrorist organization", 90 people have been taken into custody in an operation that was conducted in eight cities.

At the evening hours, the state-run Anadolu Agency announced that 105 people in total have been taken into custody. In a statement that she made today, the Batman MP of the HDP and Human Rights Commisson Spokesperson Ayşe Acar-Başaran stated that 151 people have been detained as part of the operation. (BK/SD)

* Photograph: Mezopotamya Agency