Pro-Kurdish party leader released in Turkey
Güncelleme Tarihi:
The chairman of pro-Kurdish party, who is on trial facing charges that a fake health report enabled him to avoid military service, has been released by a Turkish military court on Monday, a day after tensions increased between DTP supporters and nationalists. (UPDATED)
Nurettin Demirtas, 35, was immediately drafted and taken to a garrison in the northern town of Safranbolu, the Anatolian Agency reported.
Demirtas, has been handed over to the Gendarmerie Command in Safranbolu town of the northwestern city of Karabuk to fulfill his military service after being released by a military court overnight, the Anatolian Agency reported.
The court had also released 51 other people along with Demirtas. No explanation was given for the move and Demirtas's trial will continue. Prosecutors are seeking a prison sentence up to 10 years for the DTP chairman under Article 81/1 of the Military Penal Code.
Demirtas is not a member of parliament but was elected head of the party in November. The DTP has 20 members of parliament. Demirtas is being tried on charges of using fake health reports in order to avoid military service, obligatory for all healthy Turkish men.
The court's decision to release Demirtas and 51 other people came a day after escalating tension between DTP and nationalist MHP supporters caused the death of one person. DTP's office in Adapazari organized a "peace and fraternity night" on Sunday.
Some 100 MHP supporters carrying Turkish flags and chanting slogans against the outlawed PKK tried to stop the event, claiming that it was held to glorify the separatist PKK. DTP has long been accused of having ties with the PKK, a claim denied by the party.
A DTP supporter who attended the event had a heart attack and was taken to the hospital late Sunday. Later it was announced that he died and his body has sent to Istanbul for an autopsy.
In November, Turkey's top prosecutor asked for his Democratic Society Party - which has 20 seats in Parliament - to be banned, accusing it of being "a focal point" of separatist activities. No hearing date has been set.
The Turkish army's operations against the PKK have been intensified recently and ten Turkish soldiers have died in clashes since April 20. The renewed violence, which came two months after Turkey staged a major ground operation against PKK positions in northern Iraq, caused a rise in nationalism.