Turkish police detained eight Kurdish musicians and theater actors in Diyarbakır and Van provinces on Saturday over plays they have staged in Kurdish.
According to a tweet by Lezgin Botan, a deputy of the pro-Kurdish Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP), on Saturday, Turkish police conducted operations in Diyarbakır and Van against musicians and actors, all members of the Wan Mencel Theater.
“7 artist were detained only because they have staged plays in Kurdish. The artists, identified as Kemal Yıldırım, Emine Aksoy, Saliha Ayata, Elif Gemicioğlu, İlayda Kutlar, Asmin Açar and Ferhat Aslan, were detained in police raids on their houses in Van,” Botan tweeted.
The pro-Kurdish Fırat news agency (ANF) reported that Kurdish artist Şêrko Kanîwar was also detained following a raid on his house in Diyarbakır. The reason for the detention was not disclosed.
