Public order to be maintained unconditionally after Kobane protests: Turkish PM

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The Turkish government has instructed all security forces that public order be unconditionally maintained, Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said on Wednesday, as thousands of Kurdish people have flocked into the streets across Turkey in an effort to disperse demonstrations against the advance of Islamic State (IS) militants into the Kurdish populated town of Kobane in northern Syria.

A total of 19 Turkish nationals have been killed and 145 others injured during the protests, Davutoglu told reporters at a press conference after a security meeting in the Turkish capital of Ankara.

"This violence has turned into vandalism, into organized crime activity," Davutoglu said, blaming the pro-Kurdish People's Democratic Party (HDP) for calling Kurds of Turkey for protests.

On Monday, the HDP called for street protests against IS attack on Kobane as well as the Turkish government's stance on the issue.

Kobane, also known as Ayn al-Arab, has been subject to ferocious attacks by IS militants over the past two weeks. IS fighters have succeeded in capturing hundreds of Kurdish villages around Kobane, forcing tens of thousands of people to flee.

The peace process between the outlawed Kurdish Workers' Party ( PKK) and the Turkish state, which aims to end the decades-old Kurdish insurgency, is directly connected to the developments in Kobane, the HDP said.

However, the prime minister ruled out any link between the peace process and the street protests for Kobane.

"Peace process and public order are not alternative to each other. Nobody can dare to harm public order hiding behind the peace process. We won't make concession to those who want to destroy public order using the peace process," Davutoglu said, also slamming those who were responsible for the ongoing clashes in Kobane.

Turkey has been hosting nearly 20,000 Syrian Kurds who fled from the IS threat in the town, the prime minister said, noting they would continue to give shelter those people.

"Those who remained silent to barrel bombs, chemical weapons in Syria are now trying to create a perception that Turkey should find a solution in Kobane," Davutoglu said. He called on international community to take action in the UN Security Council in order to end the violence in Syria and bring stability in the country. Endi

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