Head of Turkey's opposition Democracy and Progress Party (DEVA) Ali Babacan condemned the torture of two Kurdish farmers who were detained by Turkish soldiers and pushed out of a helicopter in September.
The former deputy prime minister called on the Turkish government to investigate the incident and uncover its circumstances.
Babacan also denounced the arrests targeting members of the party, saying that President Recep Tayyip Erdogan should not issue warrants for people who worked on the 2015 peace talks between the government and Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK).
Erdogan accuses the DEVA party, Turkey’s second-largest opposition party and the third-largest parliamentary bloc, of being the political arm of the PKK, which Ankara considers a terrorist organization.
Meanwhile, four Turkish journalists are facing imprisonment for reporting that security forces threw the two Kurdish citizens from a police helicopter while being transported to detention in Van district, east of the country.
The two men identified as Servet Turgut, 55, and Osman Siban, 50, were arrested on September 11.
Police raided the offices of Mezopotamya and Jin news agencies and arrested the four journalists.
Van’s Public Prosecution demanded the imprisonment of the four journalists because their meetings with unknown sources were considered a “crime,” and banned any reports on the case.
Last week, the authorities blocked both sites after they reported that Turkish security forces had detained two Kurdish men and pushed them out of a helicopter in Van province.
Following the incident, Turgut succumbed to his injuries, while Siban still suffers from amnesia.
The Turkish police also prevented DEVA deputies from offering their condolences to the family of Turgut.
Amnesty International urged Ankara to immediately conduct an “independent and impartial” investigation into the matter.
“These claims must be immediately investigated in an independent and impartial way, and persons suspected of carrying out the alleged torture or other ill-treatment must be brought to justice with a fair trial.”
However, the media office of Van governor issued a statement denying the claims, saying that Turgut fell from a rocky place and resisted arrest.
