Report: Turkish Police Arrest 20 in Raids on Alleged Rebel Backers
Turkish police launched a nationwide swoop on alleged sympathizers of Kurdish separatist rebels and arrested more than 20 people, broadcaster NTV and other media outlets said.
The operation included a raid on the Ankara office of Leyla Zana, a Kurdish lawmaker known for her pro-independence views, the television channel said.
The main target was the pro-Kurdish Peace and Democracy Party (BDP), which is represented in parliament. Its offices in Diyarbakir, the main city in the Kurdish-majority southeast, were raided, media reports said.
The drive is part of a crackdown on the banned Kurdish Communities Union (KCK), suspected to be the political wing of the rebel Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK).
Turkish authorities accuse the group of trying to topple state institutions in the south and southeast and trying to foment a rebellion.
Since 2009, 700 people -- including lawmakers, intellectuals and mayors -- have been arrested for alleged links to the KCK, according to the government. Kurdish circles however put the number at around 3,500.
Zana recently called for a referendum to determine the future of Kurds in Turkey, saying: "In the beginning, we were demanding autonomy. Today, the Kurds think that it is not enough."
Kurds comprise about 12 million of Turkey's estimated 73 million people.
The PKK took up arms in the Kurdish-majority southeast of Turkey in 1984, sparking a conflict that has claimed about 45,000 lives.
Source: Agence France Presse
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