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10 Turkish policemen injured in explosion
in Turkey's Kurdish region
15.7.2012
By Ekurd.net staff writers |
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A military vehicle rolled on its side in the eastern
Kurdish province of Van, Turkey. Photo: AA
Smoke rises from burning tires as Kurdish
demonstrators clash with Turkish police during a
rally outlawed by state authorities to demand the
release of jailed PKK rebel leader Abdullah Ocalan,
on July 14, 2012, in Diyarbakir. At least 20 people
were wounded in the clashes. Several hundred
protesters in multiple groups spread throughout the
city of Diyarbakir in south-eastern Turkey (northern
Kurdistan) threw stones and swung sticks at Turkish
police, who scattered them with water cannon and
teargas Photo: Getty Images.
July 15, 2012
VAN, The Kurdish region of Turkey, — A
roadside bomb explosion in the Kurdish region in
eastern Turkey [northern Kurdistan] on Saturday
injured 10 policemen riding in a van on their way to
a shooting range, Turkey’s state-run TRT television
said, AP reported.
The explosion in Van came a day after Turkish Prime
Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan visited the city.
There was no immediate responsibility claim, but
Kurdish rebels who are fighting for self-rule in
southeastern Turkey have targeted police with
bombings in the past.
In speeches in Van and in the nearby city of Igdir
on Friday, Erdogan ruled out negotiating with the
Kurdish rebels belonging to the Kurdistan Workers
Party, or PKK, for an end to the decades-old
conflict that has killed tens of thousands of people
since 1984. Erdogan said state security forces would
continue their struggle against the group until it
lays down arms.
The attack came as police clashed with Kurdish
activists trying to hold a rally in support of the
PKK’s imprisoned leader in the Kurdish city of
Diyarbakir despite a government ban on the meeting.
A Kurdish political party called the rally to press
for house arrest for PKK leader Abdullah Ocalan,
instead of prison. The governor’s office would not
permit the rally citing security concerns.
Stone-throwing Kurds who defied a protest ban to
demand the release of jailed Kurd rebel leader
Abdullah Ocalan clashed Saturday with
Turkish police, leaving at least 20 people wounded.
A Kurdish lawmaker from the pro-Kurd Peace and
Democracy Party (BDP) Pervin Buldan and five Turkish
police were among those
injured in the clashes,www.ekurd.net
on Saturday.
Dogan news agency video footage showed some
activists throwing stones at police who used water
cannons and tear gas to prevent a group of
protesters that included some Kurdish legislators
from reaching their rallying point.
The PKK has several times proposed peaceful solutions regarding Kurdish problem,
Turkey has always refused saying that it will not negotiate with “terrorists”.
Since it was established in 1984, the PKK has been fighting the Turkish state,
which still denies the constitutional existence of Kurds, to establish a Kurdish
state in the south east of the country.
But now its aim is the creation an autonomous region and more cultural rights
for ethnic Kurds who constitute the greatest minority in Turkey, numbering more
than 20 million.
A large Turkey's Kurdish community openly sympathise with the Kurdish PKK
rebels.
The PKK wants constitutional recognition for the Kurds, regional
self-governance and Kurdish-language education in schools.
PKK's demands included releasing PKK detainees, lifting the ban on education in
Kurdish, paving the way for an autonomous democrat Kurdish system within Turkey,
reducing pressure on the detained PKK leader Abdullah Öcalan, stopping military action
against the Kurdish party and recomposing the Turkish constitution.
Turkey refuses to recognize its Kurdish population
as a distinct minority. It has allowed some cultural
rights such as limited broadcasts in the Kurdish
language and private Kurdish language courses with
the prodding of the European Union, but Kurdish
politicians say the measures fall short of their
expectations.
The PKK is considered ass 'terrorist' organization by
Ankara, U.S., the PKK continues to be on the
blacklist list in EU despite court ruling which
overturned a decision
to place the Kurdish rebel group PKK and its
political wing on the European Union's terror list.
Sources: AP | ekurd.net |
AFP | Reuters | Agencies
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