Turkish police have detained 269 people in connection to a recent demonstration in Turkey’s predominantly Kurdish province of Diyarbakır where protestors demanded an end to the solitary confinement of jailed Kurdish leader Abdullah Öcalan and his ultimate release from prison, the interior minister announced, Turkish Minute reported.
The “Rally for Freedom Against Isolation” was held in Diyarbakır on October 13 with the attendance of more than 1,500 people during which protestors called for an end to the prison restrictions imposed on Öcalan, the jailed leader of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), and his eventual release from prison.
The PKK is designated as a terrorist organization by Turkey and its Western allies.
The demonstration, which marked the 26th anniversary of the day Öcalan was forced to flee Syria under pressure from Turkey, an event that led to his eventual capture in Kenya in 1999, was held despite a ban from the Diyarbakır Governor’s Office.
Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya on Tuesday announced on X that the police had detained 269 suspects in raids conducted in 36 provinces across the country, including Adana, Antalya, Bursa, Çanakkale, Diyarbakır, İstanbul, İzmir, Şırnak and Van, who allegedly took part in the organization of the rally in support of Öcalan; who had previously participated in illegal street events by throwing stones and Molotov cocktails at security forces; and who had photos taken with senior PKK militants.
Yerlikaya also added that legal proceedings have been initiated against 47 social media account holders who shared posts related to the demonstration in Diyarbakır that are allegedly in support of a terrorist organization, namely the PKK.
The minister also accused 13 social media users, seven of them lawmakers from the pro-Kurdish Peoples’ Equality and Democracy Party (DEM Party), of sharing photos of Öcalan on the day of the rally.
According to Yerlikaya, five people were detained on the day of the demonstration for “disseminating propaganda for a terrorist organization.” While one of them was later arrested by a court, four others were released and placed under judicial supervision.
The developments come amid claims recently reported by the Al-Monitor news website that exploratory peace talks are underway between Ankara and the PKK despite an ongoing crackdown on Kurdish political figures.
According to the report, the reason for Ankara’s reconsideration of the resumption of dialogue with the PKK after an almost 10-year freeze in peace efforts is to prevent Iran from reaching out to Kurdish fighters to destabilize Turkey during a possible escalation with Israel.
The evolving situation has echoes of Turkey’s previous attempt at a peace process that collapsed in 2015. At that time President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan engaged in negotiations with Öcalan and his Syrian Kurdish allies, announcing a 10-point agreement that envisioned reforms loosening restrictions on Kurdish identity in return for the PKK laying down its arms. However, the peace process unraveled due to a combination of geopolitical factors, including US support for Syrian Kurdish groups in the fight against the Islamic State group as well as internal resistance from the Turkish military and Erdoğan’s far-right ally, the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP).
