A court in Turkey’s eastern Hakkari province on Thursday arrested Adile Kozay, the co-mayor of Yüksekova, and Hilal Duman, the co-mayor of Çukurca, on charges of alleged links to the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK).
Both co-mayors are from the pro-Kurdish Democratic Regions Party (DBP), the local branch of the pro-Kurdish Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP).
Turkey has stepped up its crackdown on Kurdish politicians in recent months. Trustees have been appointed to dozens of municipalities in the country’s predominantly Kurdish Southeast while Turkish courts earlier this month arrested 10 HDP deputies including the party’s co-chairs.
Turkey has also arrested dozens of local Kurdish politicians on terrorism charges. The developments have attracted widespread criticism from the region and Western countries. (Turkey Purge)