Turkey: Opposition figure convicted of PKK propaganda

KAHRAMANMARAS, Turkey

A regional criminal court on Tuesday convicted Mehmet Eren, a provincial head of Turkey's opposition Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP), of making propaganda on social media for PKK terror organization.

The 3rd High Criminal Court in the southern province of Kahramanmaras sentenced Eren to one year and 10 months in prison for sharing PKK/KCK and MLKP (Marxist-Lenninist Communist Party) photos and videos on his social media accounts in a "laudatory and inciting manner," and "legitimizing the [PKK] group's forceful and violent methods".

However, the court released Eren considering the time he spent in custody pending trial.

Eren was arrested in March this year in a counterterrorism operation and remanded in custody with three other suspects.

The Turkish government has accused the HDP of being linked to the PKK, which is listed as a terrorist organization by Turkey, the U.S. and the EU.

The terrorist group resumed its armed campaign against Turkey in July 2015. Since then, it has been responsible for the deaths of some 1,200 Turkish security personnel and civilians, including a number of women and children.

Reporting by Ersoy Sevinc; Writing by Ayse Humeyra Atilgan