Turkish police detained three mayors from a main pro-Kurdish party on Monday on suspicion of ‘membership of a terrorist group’ and ‘disseminating terrorist propaganda,’ according to the official Anadolu news agency.
The three local mayors from the Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) in Kayapinar, Bismil and Kocakoy in the Kurdish majority southeast, as well as the dismissed mayor of Diyarbakir, Selcuk Mizrakli, were detained as part of an investigation launched by prosecutors, the report said.
In August, Mizrakli was one of three mayors removed from office over alleged links to Kurdish militants, along with those from Mardin and Van provinces in eastern Turkey.
The three – members of the HDP who were elected in March – were suspended over alleged ties to the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), which is listed as a terrorist group by Ankara, AFP said.