BDP rejects role in Şırnak lynch attempt

ANKARA – Hürriyet Daily News

BDP chairman Demirtaş (C) dismisses the accusations targeting his party.

Peace and Democracy Party (BDP) deputy group chairman Hasip Kaplan has denied accusations that he instigated a mob to attack the district governor of Şırnak’s Uludere, insisting that on the contrary he prevented “more serious incidents” there.

“I never instructed anyone to beat the governor,” Kaplan told reporters concerning the Dec. 31 incident in which district governor Naif Yavuz was mobbed after he visited families who lost sons in the botched air raid that killed 35 civilians last week and was then taken to hospital with slight injuries. “Tensions were running high at the scene and I warned the government so as to prevent bigger troubles,” he said, referring to remarks which called on ministers travelling to the village to stay away.

BDP chairman Selahattin Demirtaş also dismissed the accusations targeting Kaplan, saying the crowd reacted not against the district governor himself but the government. “The district governor knows Kaplan and BDP seniors did their best to prevent the attack against him,”Demirtaş said. 

He expressed dismay that Kaplan’s role in the trouble was being questioned while the government is yet to explain why the 35 civilians were targeted. “It’s obvious that the lives of 35 people are not precious for the state,” he said. Demirtaş claimed the battering of the governor was being manipulated to divert attention from the killings. “The death of 35 people is the major incident here, the government should give an account for the massacre,” he said.