Turkey: New wave of arrests targets main opposition party
With their hands cuffed behind their backs, the suspects were taken into custody by law enforcement officers. Scenes like these unfolded throughout Izmir, affecting everyone from top local leaders to municipal employees. All faced charges of corruption and misconduct. Among those newly detained were Tunç Soyer, former mayor of Izmir's metropolitan municipality (2019-2024), several former officials and the current provincial president of the CHP, Senol Aslanoglu.
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France 24
a day ago
- France 24
PKK leader accuses Turkish government of 'seeking to sabotage' disarmament process
The Kurdish PKK group on Wednesday said that some elements of the Turkish government are seeking to undermine a historic disarmament process meant to put an end to decades of conflict. The PKK, or Kurdistan Workers' Party, in May declared an end to its armed conflict and was expected to hold a series of ceremonies to destroy its weapons. But Mustafa Karasu, one of the group's founders and top leaders, told a Kurdish-linked television station that "a group at the heart of the state is seeking to sabotage the process". "We are ready, but it is the (Turkish) government that has not taken the needed steps," he said. Karasu cited continued Turkish military strikes on PKK positions in northern Irak as well as the lack of improvement in the prison conditions of the PKK's founder Abdullah Ocalan. Ocalan, now 76, has been held at the Imrali island jail since 1999. In February, he called on the PKK to lay down its weapons after decades of conflict with the Turkish state that has left at least 45,000 people dead. 01:51 "Some friends have gone to Imrali, but it's not enough. The isolation has lasted for 26 years," despite some adjustments, Karasu said. "The situation of our leader affects the process and slows it down," he said. Karasu did not confirm if any disarmament ceremonies were still planned. "We want the process to continue and flourish. But the situation leads us to observe a blockage. The government's attitude is the cause," he said.
LeMonde
2 days ago
- LeMonde
Turkey: New wave of arrests targets main opposition party
There was a sense of déjà vu in Turkey. After the publication of a political cartoon, which Turkish authorities said depicted the Prophet Muhammad, led to the arrest of four journalists on Monday, June 30, in Istanbul, authorities carried out a large-scale sweep in Izmir at dawn on Tuesday, July 1. Izmir, the country's third-largest city, is a bastion of the Republican People's Party (CHP), the main opposition party. 109 municipal officials affiliated with the CHP were arrested. The operation strongly recalled the events of March 19, when, at dawn, the CHP mayor of Istanbul, Ekrem Imamoglu – President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's main opponent – was taken into custody along with 104 elected officials, associates and staff members. With their hands cuffed behind their backs, the suspects were taken into custody by law enforcement officers. Scenes like these unfolded throughout Izmir, affecting everyone from top local leaders to municipal employees. All faced charges of corruption and misconduct. Among those newly detained were Tunç Soyer, former mayor of Izmir's metropolitan municipality (2019-2024), several former officials and the current provincial president of the CHP, Senol Aslanoglu.
LeMonde
2 days ago
- LeMonde
PKK accuses Turkish government of undermining disarmament effort
The Kurdish PKK group on Wednesday, July 2 said that some elements of the Turkish government are seeking to undermine a historic disarmament process meant to put an end to decades of conflict. The PKK, or Kurdistan Workers' Party, in May declared an end to its armed conflict and was expected to hold a series of ceremonies to destroy its weapons. But Mustafa Karasu, one of the group's founders and top leaders, told a Kurdish-linked television station that "a group at the heart of the state is seeking to sabotage the process". "We are ready, but it is the (Turkish) government that has not taken the needed steps," he said. Karasu cited continued Turkish military strikes on PKK positions in northern Irak as well as the lack of improvement in the prison conditions of the PKK's founder Abdullah Ocalan. Ocalan, now 76, has been held at the Imrali island jail since 1999. In February, he called on the PKK to lay down its weapons after decades of conflict with the Turkish state that has left at least 45,000 people dead. "Some friends have gone to Imrali, but it's not enough. The isolation has lasted for 26 years," despite some adjustments, Karasu said. "The situation of our leader affects the process and slows it down," he said. Karasu did not confirm if any disarmament ceremonies were still planned. "We want the process to continue and flourish. But the situation leads us to observe a blockage. The government's attitude is the cause," he said.
