Raid on Kurdish Association and arrest number of people in N. Kurdistan

This morning, Turkish police launched a raid on the Kurdish Association for the Studies of Mesopotamia Languages and Cultures (MED-DER) building and the Bayez Library, as well as the homes of several MED-DER workers.

It was reported that the Turkish police had broken the door of the association's building located in Gazeler, and raided the building, so that the searches inside the building lasted about 4 hours, after which members of the police confiscated Kurdish language books, magazines and registration discs of the association, without the presence of any lawyer during the search, and after the end of the search, the door lock was changed and the key was handed over to the neighborhood' mukhtar.

As part of the investigation, the arrest decision was issued against several people, the decision to deal with the file "discreetly and confidentially" and the decision to prevent the detainees from meeting their lawyers before 24 hours have passed, and the investigation reportedly began based on the confessions and statements of witness Umit Akbek, who testified against hundreds so far and another witness, and has been ongoing since 2022.

In the same investigation, the director of the (Jîn Art Huner) Center for Culture and Art in Izmir, Bilqis Suleyman Oghlo Betkin, was arrested after her home was raided, was taken to the Izmir Police Directorate.

Sh-S

ANHA