ANKARA, June 3 (Xinhua) -- Turkish police detained a pro-Kurdish mayor in Hakkari, southeastern Türkiye, on Monday over alleged links to the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), the Interior Ministry said on Monday.

Mehmet Siddik Akis, a member of the opposition People's Equality and Democracy Party (DEM), has now been replaced by the provincial governor of Hakkari, the ministry said in a statement.

Akis allegedly took a senior position in the PKK, as well as conducted "interrogations" and collected money on behalf of the group, the ministry said, adding that the mayor was also allegedly involved in illegal marches, terrorist funerals, and recruitment activities while pressuring shopkeepers to participate in the group's actions in the province.

The ministry also accused Akis of visiting PKK's camps in rural areas and meeting with high-ranking members of the group there.

The mayor was detained in the eastern Van province over an investigation conducted by the Hakkari Chief Public Prosecutor's Office, the semi-official Anadolu Agency reported.

The arrest came two months after Akis was elected mayor of Hakkari in the March 31 municipal elections, during which the DEM won 10 provinces, mainly in the southeast of Türkiye. Enditem

Related

Go to Forum >>0 Comment(s)