Some 90,000 Flee Southeastern Turkish Provinces After Imposed Curfew

ANKARA (Sputnik) — About 90,000 people have fled the southeastern Turkish provinces of Mardin and Hakkari in three days, after the country's authorities imposed a curfew there, local media reported Wednesday.

On Sunday, administrations of Turkey's southeastern provinces of Mardin and Hakkari issued statements, imposing curfew in their respective districts of Nusaybin and Yuksekova. The decision came after Turkish Interior Minister Efkan Ala announced on Friday new anti-terror campaign against the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) in the districts of Yuksekova, Nusaybin and Sirnak.

According to the Turkish Hurriyet newspaper, some 40,000 out of 70,000 Yuksekova residents have fled to other cities, as the government forces have been fighting up to 400 alleged militants in the town.

About 50,000 people out of the 90,000-population of Nusaybin left the town, the newspaper said.

In summer 2015, Turkey initiated a military campaign against the PKK in the country's southeastern regions, which have a predominately Kurdish population. Since the beginning of the campaign, Ankara has imposed several round-the-clock curfews.