Dozens killed in protests in Türkiye

(Baonghean.vn) - On Friday, October 10, a report from the Turkish Interior Ministry said that dozens of people were killed and hundreds of others were injured in protests against the Ankara government's refusal to send troops to support the Syrian city of Kobane against the IS organization.

Kurdish protests against police in Ankara, Türkiye on October 9. Photo: Adem Altan

Since Monday evening, October 6, pro-Kurdish protests have rocked Turkey, especially in the predominantly Kurdish southeast. On Friday, October 10, the Interior Minister announced that at least 31 people were killed and 360 injured, including 139 police officers. Since Monday, police have arrested 1,024 people and imprisoned 58. Many public buildings and shops have been severely damaged. “The riots must stop immediately and everyone must take responsibility to put an end to such incidents,” the Minister stressed.

After the Ankara government refused to send troops to help the city of Kobane, located between the Syrian and Turkish borders, which has been besieged by the IS organization for many days, Kurds across the country organized protests to protest the decision. However, the protests quickly turned into riots. It is known that in recent years, riots like the above have never happened in Türkiye. Most of the victims of the riots were mostly Kurds in southeastern Turkey.

On Tuesday, for the first time in 20 years, a curfew was imposed in six provinces in the southeast of the country, but was lifted after 24 hours. However, it remained in place in the evening in Diyarbakir, the Kurdish capital of Turkey. From Thursday to Friday evening, violent protests broke out in several cities, especially in Gaziantep (south). Four people were killed in clashes in Gaziantep, 11 in Diyarbakir, six in Mardin, five in Siirt, one in Batman, Mus, Van, Adana and Istanbul.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Thursday condemned the violence as “sabotaging” peace talks between Ankara and the PKK, vowing to take “all necessary measures” to punish the troublemakers.

Chu Thanh

According to Liberation October 10