Twelve protesters dead amid claims Turkey ‘isn’t doing enough in ISIS fight’

At least 12 people have been killed during pro-Kurdish demonstrations in Turkey amid claims the country is not doing enough in the fight against Islamic State jihadists. According to reports, five people have been killed in Diyarbakir, the largest town in Turkey’s majority-Kurdish southeast region. Several other deaths were recorded in other southeastern towns, including three in Mardin, two in Siirt, one in Batman and another in Mus. Police have also used tear gas and water cannons to disperse angry protests in Istanbul and Ankara.

Violence will be met with violence. This irrational attitude should immediately be abandoned and (the protesters) should withdraw from the streets.

Turkish Interior Minister Efkan Ala

Turkish Interior Minister Efkan Ala accused the pro-Kurdish protesters of “betraying their own country”. The demonstrations called by the main pro-Kurdish party, the People’s Democratic Party (HDP), stem from claims that Ankara is failing to intervene militarily against IS jihadists fighting for the Syrian border town of Kobani. Fresh coalition airstrikes have targeted fighters around the town, where some 400 people are believed to have been killed and thousands displaced during weeks of fighting. Plumes of smoke billowed into the air over Kobani after US, Saudi Arabian and United Arab Emirates jets launched five attacks against targets south of the city.

Middle East Turkey