Turkey imposes curfews on 16 mainly Kurdish villages

Turkey imposed round-the-clock curfews on 16 villages in its mainly Kurdish southeast yesterday as security forces tried to root out militants nearby and sacked two co-mayors it accused of supporting the fighters.

Authorities in the province of Diyarbakir imposed the lockdown as security forces searched for members of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) in the hills and woods near the town of Silvan, the provincial governor said.

Security forces have been battling the PKK since a ceasefire collapsed last year, destroying a two-year peace process that was meant to end a three-decade conflict.

The government says thousands of militants and about 500 soldiers and police officers have been killed since the ceasefire broke down. Human rights groups say about 400 civilians have also been killed.

People will not be allowed to enter or leave the area near Silvan during the curfew, the governor’s statement said.

“It is important for citizens to follow the ban for the security of their lives and property,” it said.

Human Rights Watch this week accused the government of preventing independent investigations into alleged rights abuses during the lockdowns that include unlawful killings of civilians, displacement of civilians and destruction of private property.

Mayors removed

Separately, the interior ministry ordered the co-mayors of the town of

Mazidagi

in Mardin province be removed from office, security sources said.

A prosecutor is investigating the elected officials’ potential culpability after a municipal vehicle was allegedly used in a car-bomb attack on a gendarmes outpost that killed two soldiers on July 9th.

In the past year, authorities jailed 22 mayors and sacked another 31 for their alleged support for the PKK. All are members of the Democratic Regions Party, which denies collaborating with the PKK. - Reuters