Detained in Kars, 3 people arrested
* Photo: Mezopotamya Agency (MA)
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Detained in Turkey's Kurdish-majority Kars province on October 1 and removed from office, Peoples' Democratic Party's (HDp) Kars Co-Mayor Şevin Alaca and 20 others were referred to courthouse.
Following their statements at the prosecutor's office, Demokrat Haber reporter Selda Manduz and politicians Hazal Agdeve and İzzet Artuğ were referred to judgeship to be arrested and Sabri Avağ, Adem Karataş and Zorba Başkutlu with a request for their release on probation.
As reported by Mezopotamya Agency, referred to judgeship by the prosecutor's office, Adem Karataş, Selda Manduz and Sabri Avağ have been released on probation by the Kars Penal Judgeship of Peace while Zorba Başkutlu, Hazal Agdeve and İzzet Artuğ have been arrested.
While the arrested persons have been reportedly sent to Kars Prison, the detention period of dismissed Kars Co-Mayor Şevin Alaca as well as 14 other detained people has been extended by four days.
The following 14 people were in detention as of 8.30 a.m. today (October 5): Dismissed Kars Co-Mayor Şevin Alaca, Kars Vice Co-Mayor Muazzez Çağrıtekinci, HDP Kars Provincial Co-Chair Cengiz Anlı, Kars Municipal Council members Kaya Naki, Fahrettin Kaya, Ömer Albayrak and Suat Bayhan, Kağızman Provincial General Assembly member Halil Kan, Dağpınar Municipal Council member Hamdi Erkmen, Digor Municipal Council members Hamit Taşdelen, Free Women's Movement (TJA) activist Medya Tağay, former Digor Municipal Council member Reis Baykiz, municipality worker Şengül Erkmen and Bülent Ağbaba.
What happened?
Kars Co-Mayor Şevin Alaca was detained as part of an operation against the HDP and senior municipality officials in Kars on October 1.
Following their detention, Alaca, five Municipal Council members and two Provincial General Assembly members were removed from office.
Taken into custody as part of another operation against the HDP on September 25, Kars Co-Mayor Ayhan Bilgen was arrested in early morning hours on October 2. Shortly after he was arrested, a trustee (Kars Governor Türker Öksüz) has been appointed as a trustee by the Ministry of Interior.
While he was still in detention, Ayhan Bilgen made a statement via his attorneys and announced that "if no trustee was appointed until the end of his detention period, he would resign from office as the Kars Mayor." (RT/TP/SD)