Turkey’s Interior Ministry removed Mehmet Fatih Taş, a district mayor from the Kurdish Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) in Diyarbakır province, from office after he was arrested due to his alleged role in a terrorist attack on Sept. 12, Deutsche Welle Turkish service reported.
The Diyarbakır Governor’s Office announced that the explosion, which killed seven civilians, was perpetrated by the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) terrorist organization, although it did not claim the attack.
Following the blast Taş and four employees from the Kulp district municipality were arrested over alleged PKK links.
The ministry appointed Mustafa Gözlet, the Kulp district governor, as a trustee for the mayor’s office.
Turkey in August removed three Kurdish mayors from Diyarbakır, Van and Mardin over alleged terrorist links.