Turkish police detain 282 suspects in raids targeting PKK militants

ISTANBUL - Turkish police detained 282 suspected members of the Kurdistan Workers Party, or PKK, militant group in raids over the last five days, Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya said on Tuesday.

The raids came as Turkey continues to remove elected pro-Kurdish mayors from their posts over militant ties in a crackdown coinciding with hopes for an end to a 40-year conflict between the PKK and authorities.

Jailed PKK leader Abdullah Ocalan is expected to make a statement on such efforts, four months after an ally of President Tayyip Erdogan urged him to call on the militants to lay down their arms.

Police carried out this weeks counter-terror raids in 51 provinces, as well as in the capital, Ankara, and the largest city of Istanbul, the minister said on X.

The suspects were accused of conducting PKK propaganda, providing financing for the group, recruiting members and joining in street protests, he said. The police seized two AK 47 rifles among other weapons.

On Saturday, Turkey removed a pro-Kurdish DEM Party mayor from his post in the eastern province of Van over terrorism-related convictions, taking to eight the number of DEM mayors replaced by state-appointed officials since 2024 elections.

The PKK, designated as a terrorist group by Turkey and its Western allies, launched its insurgency against the state in 1984. More than 40,000 people have been killed in the conflict. REUTERS

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