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Asharq Al-Awsat
Asharq Al-Awsat
World
Asharq Al-Awsat

Pro-Kurdish Mayor Arrested in Turkey

Image via Reuters

A mayor from Turkey’s main pro-Kurdish party was arrested on Friday, accused of membership in a “terrorist organization”, according to state news agency Anadolu.

Azim Yacan, mayor of Ipekyolu in the province of Van in southeast Turkey, was arrested along with his deputy, and charged with “terrorist propaganda” and membership in the outlawed Kurdistan Worker’s Party (PKK).

Yacan is a member of the pro-Kurdish People’s Democratic Party (HDP), the country’s third-largest party.

The government has cracked down on the HDP in recent months over alleged links to the PKK, which has fought a bloody insurgency against the state since 1984.

Three recently-elected mayors were removed from office in August over alleged PKK ties. Three other mayors were arrested in October on similar charges.

The HDP was the only party to criticize Turkey’s offensive against the Kurds in northern Syria last month, labelling it an “invasion”.

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