ANKARA
Three people have been killed and at least 36 injured in demonstrations throughout Turkey in support of the presence of the terrorist group Kurdistan Workers' Party, or PKK, in the Syrian town of Kobani across the Turkish border, Turkish police have said.
Hakan Buksur, 17, died after being hit by a gas canister in the head Tuesday in protests in the town of Varto in the eastern province of Mus.
Protesters Yusuf Celik and Muhdi Erdogan also died during demonstrations in the southeastern province of Siirt.
Turkish Interior Minister Efkan Ala said: "Violence will not solve anything and will be reprised.
"Such senseless attitudes should come to an urgent stop."
At least 35 people, five of them Turkish police officers, were also injured in Istanbul, western Denizli and the eastern provinces of Mus, Erzurum, Siirt, Igdir, Diyarbakir and Sirnak provinces.
- Shops, vehicles damaged
Many private and public cars, bank branches, offices and political party buildings were damaged in clashes between protesters and police in several dozen other Turkish cities.
Dozens of people from Istanbul and Izmir were also detained in protests and provincial governorates declared curfews in several cities including Mardin, Van, Batman, Siirt and Diyarbakir.
Primary and secondary schools in Diyarbakir and the Van University were closed for a day while Hakkari University was shut for three days.
All train services between Mersin and Adana were stopped.
In Sirnak's Cizre, a group attempted to pass onto the Syrian side of the border, but were prevented by Turkish gendarmerie soldiers.
A group of people attacked five gendarmerie forces who fired warning shots, but the soldiers were taken away to safety by pro-Kurdish Democratic Regions Party (DBP) officials.
- Police attacked
Protesters in Sirnak also turned over an armored vehicle.
Protesters attacked police with Molotov bombs in southeastern Batman province, while police responded with tear gas and water cannons. Three bank branches and several shops were also attacked.
ISIL militants launched an offensive in mid-September, capturing many villages surrounding the northern Syrian city of Kobani from Kurdish fighters, who are grouped into "People's Protection Units", or YPG.
Turkish officials have said the country is against supporting armed groups of the PKK-offshoot Democratic Union Party, or PYD, in Kobani with military and financial aid, notwithstanding they are fighting against ISIL.
PKK is listed as a terrorist organization by Turkey as well as by the U.S. and the European Union.
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