HDP's call for march 'provocation': Minister

ANKARA

Turkish Interior Minister Efkan Ala slammed an opposition party leader Wednesday, accusing him of provoking the public by calling for a protest march in southeastern Turkey.

Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) Co-Chair Selahattin Demirtas on Monday called for residents of Diyarbakir to march to Sur to protest the curfew imposed in the central district amid security forces’ operations against the terrorist PKK organization.

Ala said this was a clear “provocation,” adding, “The provoker will be responsible for the consequences”.

“We are calling on our citizens not to give credence to such provocations. We are doing everything in a legal manner to ensure their peace and security. God willing, we will restore peace in the following days,” he told reporters at parliament.

Asked if the operations would continue, Ala said they would “definitely” go on “in places where there are ditches, bombs, and terrorists causing unrest among citizens.

“But as you see, there is no problem in other places where none of this exists. And people [living there] are going about their usual business”.

“God willing, we will restore peace and confidence [in Sur],” he said.

Turkey's Diyarbakir Governorship has banned entry to the Sur district, where anti-PKK operations are ongoing.

The governor’s office said in a statement Wednesday that the entry ban on Sur would not apply to district residents.

The restrictions apply until further notice.

The statement said it is important to respect the ban for the sake of Diyarbakir's "peace and security".

Turkey's southeast has been the scene of significant military operations since December against the terrorist PKK group, which renewed its armed campaign against the Turkish state in late July 2015.

Since then, more than 280 security forces personnel have been martyred and thousands of PKK terrorists killed in operations across Turkey and northern Iraq.