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Why Turkey Remains Indifferent Over State Violence Against Kurds

© REUTERS / Sertac KayarRelatives of Siyar Salman mourn over his grave during a funeral ceremony in the Kurdish dominated southeastern city of Diyarbakir, Turkey, December 15, 2015. According to local media, Salman, a 19-year old man, was killed on Monday in Diyarbakir during a protest against the curfew in Sur district.
Relatives of Siyar Salman mourn over his grave during a funeral ceremony in the Kurdish dominated southeastern city of Diyarbakir, Turkey, December 15, 2015. According to local media, Salman, a 19-year old man, was killed on Monday in Diyarbakir during a protest against the curfew in Sur district. - Sputnik International
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Turkish society has been keeping silent about what happens in Kurdish towns, where Erdogan’s army and police are shelling residential areas, killing more civilians every week. Why do even Kurds in western Turkey appear so indifferent on the issue?

There are four reasons for residents of the west of Turkey to be indifferent or even hostile to the state violence against Kurds in the southeast, as described in a fresh column published in Al Monitor.

The first reason is related to suppression of any opposition in the country.

“It is not easy to raise one's voice in Turkey against the Justice and Development Party (AKP) government on any issue, especially when it involves the [outlawed in Turkey Kurdistan Workers’ Party] PKK. Multiple times peace activists have fallen victim to terrorist attacks and arrests. For example, most recently 15 Dokuz Eylul University students were arrested in Izmir while protesting for peace,” Al Monitor explains.

A man looks out of a building which was damaged during the security operations and clashes between Turkish security forces and Kurdish militants, in Sur district of Diyarbakir, Turkey - Sputnik International
Turkey Headed Toward Civil War
Any enthusiasm in the struggle for peace was thus simply put down by the brute force of the repressive regime – news and gossip about harsh arrests and the murders of activists spread quickly.

The second reason is that Kurds, who don’t live in the southeast and don’t face everyday violence perpetrated by Ankara’s security forces, are highly assimilated by the Turkish majority.

“Although [the leader of the only pro-Kurdish parliamentary party, HDP, a Kurd himself, Selahattin] Demirtas is calling upon the people in western Turkey to raise their voices, even the majority of Kurds have not shown willingness to take on this call,” Al Monitor states.

To a large extent, such a low morale is intertwined with the first reason mentioned – simple fear for the repression machine of Erdogan’s Turkey. Even Turks who sympathize with Kurds are afraid to raise their voices.

​The third reason for people in western Turkey remaining silent as full-scale civil war in the southeast is getting momentum is the moral dilemma of speaking up while the number of deaths of police and soldiers steadily grows.

“The majority of people in the west do not view the current unrest as nonviolent resistance but as terror attacks. Several towns in the southeast that had a majority of HDP voters in the last elections have declared ‘self-rule’ and have started digging ditches around their towns. People in the west of Turkey cannot comprehend the meaning of self-governance or the necessity of the trenches, both of which have negative connotations,” Al Monitor details.

The last but not the least reason is the lack of trustworthy information. In Turkey, the majority still gets the news from TV, which is predominantly government-controlled. Social media may not serve as a viable alternative due to the abundance of biased and unverifiable information, Al Monitor notes.

“For decades there have been several incidents of mass violence without proper public reconciliation,” Dilek Gokcin, a film director who closely follows Kurdish matters, told Al-Monitor. “We live in a constant state of denial. So maybe the question ‘Why people are silent when there is a war?’ is not quite appropriate. There is no war here, the war is in Kurdistan. Ignorance then becomes the ultimate bliss. If you don't know, you cannot be held accountable, so most people have a rational apathy because they are helpless in the face of atrocities.”

© AFP 2023 / ILYAS AKENGINTurkish masked plain clothes police officer patrols a street during a clash between Kurdish activists and Turkish police in the historical Sur district on December 24,2015 in Diyarbakir
Turkish masked plain clothes police officer patrols a street during a clash between Kurdish activists and Turkish police in the historical Sur district on December 24,2015 in Diyarbakir - Sputnik International
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Turkish masked plain clothes police officer patrols a street during a clash between Kurdish activists and Turkish police in the historical Sur district on December 24,2015 in Diyarbakir
© REUTERS / Sertac KayarPlainclothes policemen react during a protest following a funeral ceremony for Kurdish militants in the southeastern city of Diyarbakir, Turkey, December 24, 2015. REUTERS/Sertac Kayar
Plainclothes policemen react during a protest following a funeral ceremony for Kurdish militants in the southeastern city of Diyarbakir, Turkey, December 24, 2015. - Sputnik International
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Plainclothes policemen react during a protest following a funeral ceremony for Kurdish militants in the southeastern city of Diyarbakir, Turkey, December 24, 2015. REUTERS/Sertac Kayar
© REUTERS / Sertac KayarTurkish riot police stand guard during a protest against the curfew in Sur district in the Kurdish dominated southeastern city of Diyarbakir, Turkey, December 6, 2015. REUTERS/Sertac Kayar
Turkish riot police stand guard during a protest against the curfew in Sur district in the Kurdish dominated southeastern city of Diyarbakir, Turkey, December 6, 2015. - Sputnik International
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Turkish riot police stand guard during a protest against the curfew in Sur district in the Kurdish dominated southeastern city of Diyarbakir, Turkey, December 6, 2015. REUTERS/Sertac Kayar
© AP Photo / Cagdas ErdoganThe militants of the Kurdistan Workers' Party, or PKK, stand at a barricade in Sirnak, Turkey, late Wednesday, Dec. 23, 2015. Security forces have killed 183 Kurdish rebels in a week in southeast Turkey, news agencies reported. The government imposed curfews in the mainly Kurdish towns of Cizre, Silopi, Nusaybin and Sur district of Diyarbakir as the security forces battle militants linked to the PKK who have moved their fight for autonomy to some towns and city neighborhoods in southeastern Turkey. (AP Photo/Cagdas Erdogan)
The militants of the Kurdistan Workers' Party, or PKK, stand at a barricade in Sirnak, Turkey, late Wednesday, Dec. 23, 2015. - Sputnik International
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The militants of the Kurdistan Workers' Party, or PKK, stand at a barricade in Sirnak, Turkey, late Wednesday, Dec. 23, 2015. Security forces have killed 183 Kurdish rebels in a week in southeast Turkey, news agencies reported. The government imposed curfews in the mainly Kurdish towns of Cizre, Silopi, Nusaybin and Sur district of Diyarbakir as the security forces battle militants linked to the PKK who have moved their fight for autonomy to some towns and city neighborhoods in southeastern Turkey. (AP Photo/Cagdas Erdogan)
© AP Photo / Cagdas ErdoganA militant of the Kurdistan Workers' Party, or PKK, stands at a barricade in Sirnak, Turkey, late Wednesday, Dec. 23, 2015. Security forces have killed 183 Kurdish rebels in a week in southeast Turkey, news agencies reported. The government imposed curfews in the mainly Kurdish towns of Cizre, Silopi, Nusaybin and Sur district of Diyarbakir as the security forces battle militants linked to the PKK who have moved their fight for autonomy to some towns and city neighborhoods in southeastern Turkey.(AP Photo/Cagdas Erdogan)
A militant of the Kurdistan Workers' Party, or PKK, stands at a barricade in Sirnak, Turkey, late Wednesday, Dec. 23, 2015. - Sputnik International
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A militant of the Kurdistan Workers' Party, or PKK, stands at a barricade in Sirnak, Turkey, late Wednesday, Dec. 23, 2015. Security forces have killed 183 Kurdish rebels in a week in southeast Turkey, news agencies reported. The government imposed curfews in the mainly Kurdish towns of Cizre, Silopi, Nusaybin and Sur district of Diyarbakir as the security forces battle militants linked to the PKK who have moved their fight for autonomy to some towns and city neighborhoods in southeastern Turkey.(AP Photo/Cagdas Erdogan)
© AP Photo / Cagdas ErdoganMilitants of the Kurdistan Workers' Party, or PKK, stand in a bunker in Sirnak, Turkey, late Wednesday, Dec. 23, 2015. Security forces have killed 183 Kurdish rebels in a week in southeast Turkey, news agencies reported. The government imposed curfews in the mainly Kurdish towns of Cizre, Silopi, Nusaybin and Sur district of Diyarbakir as the security forces battle militants linked to the PKK who have moved their fight for autonomy to some towns and city neighborhoods in southeastern Turkey. A poster of jailed PKK leader Abdullah Ocalan seen in the background.(AP Photo/Cagdas Erdogan)
Militants of the Kurdistan Workers' Party, or PKK, stand in a bunker in Sirnak, Turkey, late Wednesday, Dec. 23, 2015. - Sputnik International
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Militants of the Kurdistan Workers' Party, or PKK, stand in a bunker in Sirnak, Turkey, late Wednesday, Dec. 23, 2015. Security forces have killed 183 Kurdish rebels in a week in southeast Turkey, news agencies reported. The government imposed curfews in the mainly Kurdish towns of Cizre, Silopi, Nusaybin and Sur district of Diyarbakir as the security forces battle militants linked to the PKK who have moved their fight for autonomy to some towns and city neighborhoods in southeastern Turkey. A poster of jailed PKK leader Abdullah Ocalan seen in the background.(AP Photo/Cagdas Erdogan)
© AP Photo / Cagdas ErdoganPeople carry the coffin of Medeni Orak, a man killed in Nusaybin, Turkey, Thursday, Dec. 24, 2015. Security forces have killed 183 Kurdish rebels in a week in southeast Turkey, news agencies reported. The government imposed curfews in the mainly Kurdish towns of Cizre, Silopi, Nusaybin and Sur district of Diyarbakir as the security forces battle militants linked to the PKK who have moved their fight for autonomy to some towns and city neighborhoods in southeastern Turkey.(AP Photo/Cagdas Erdogan)
People carry the coffin of Medeni Orak, a man killed in Nusaybin, Turkey, Thursday, Dec. 24, 2015. - Sputnik International
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People carry the coffin of Medeni Orak, a man killed in Nusaybin, Turkey, Thursday, Dec. 24, 2015. Security forces have killed 183 Kurdish rebels in a week in southeast Turkey, news agencies reported. The government imposed curfews in the mainly Kurdish towns of Cizre, Silopi, Nusaybin and Sur district of Diyarbakir as the security forces battle militants linked to the PKK who have moved their fight for autonomy to some towns and city neighborhoods in southeastern Turkey.(AP Photo/Cagdas Erdogan)
© REUTERS / Sertac KayarPeople look at buildings which were damaged during the security operations and clashes between Turkish security forces and Kurdish militants, in Sur district of Diyarbakir, Turkey, December 11, 2015. REUTERS/Sertac Kayar
People look at buildings which were damaged during the security operations and clashes between Turkish security forces and Kurdish militants, in Sur district of Diyarbakir, Turkey, December 11, 2015. - Sputnik International
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People look at buildings which were damaged during the security operations and clashes between Turkish security forces and Kurdish militants, in Sur district of Diyarbakir, Turkey, December 11, 2015. REUTERS/Sertac Kayar
© AFP 2023 / Ilyas AkenginTurkish police carry caskets during a funeral ceremony on December 16, 2015 at the police headquarters in Diyarbakir, for three police officers who were killed during clashes with Turkish forces and Kurdish militants on December 15.
Three Turkish police officers were killed December 15 in a roadside bomb attack on their vehicle blamed on Kurdish rebels, security sources said, amid a new upsurge in violence in Turkey's troubled southeast. The three were killed in the Silvan district of the mainly Kurdish province of Diyarbakir as their armoured vehicle travelled on a main road, the security sources told AFP. Three other policemen were wounded.
/ AFP / ILYAS AKENGIN
Turkish police carry caskets during a funeral ceremony on December 16, 2015 at the police headquarters in Diyarbakir, for three police officers who were killed during clashes with Turkish forces and Kurdish militants on December 15. - Sputnik International
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Turkish police carry caskets during a funeral ceremony on December 16, 2015 at the police headquarters in Diyarbakir, for three police officers who were killed during clashes with Turkish forces and Kurdish militants on December 15.
Three Turkish police officers were killed December 15 in a roadside bomb attack on their vehicle blamed on Kurdish rebels, security sources said, amid a new upsurge in violence in Turkey's troubled southeast. The three were killed in the Silvan district of the mainly Kurdish province of Diyarbakir as their armoured vehicle travelled on a main road, the security sources told AFP. Three other policemen were wounded.
/ AFP / ILYAS AKENGIN
© REUTERS / Murad SezerA woman walks past a building which was damaged during the security operations and clashes between Turkish security forces and Kurdish militants, in the southeastern town of Silvan in Diyarbakir province, Turkey, December 7, 2015. Picture taken December 7, 2015. REUTERS/Murad Sezer
A woman walks past a building which was damaged during the security operations and clashes between Turkish security forces and Kurdish militants, in the southeastern town of Silvan in Diyarbakir province, Turkey, December 7, 2015. - Sputnik International
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A woman walks past a building which was damaged during the security operations and clashes between Turkish security forces and Kurdish militants, in the southeastern town of Silvan in Diyarbakir province, Turkey, December 7, 2015. Picture taken December 7, 2015. REUTERS/Murad Sezer
© AFP 2023 / Bulent KilicA relative grieves at the grave of Medeni Orak, killed in the southeastern city of Nusaybin, on December 24, 2015, in Mardin province.
The government has imposed curfews in the mainly Kurdish towns of Cizre and Silopi, Nusaybin as security forces battle militants linked to the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK). / AFP / BULENT KILIC
A relative grieves at the grave of Medeni Orak, killed  in the southeastern city of Nusaybin, on December 24, 2015, in Mardin province. - Sputnik International
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A relative grieves at the grave of Medeni Orak, killed in the southeastern city of Nusaybin, on December 24, 2015, in Mardin province.
The government has imposed curfews in the mainly Kurdish towns of Cizre and Silopi, Nusaybin as security forces battle militants linked to the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK). / AFP / BULENT KILIC
© AFP 2023 / Ilyas AkenginA boy shows bullets used during clashes between Kurdish fighters and Turkish special forces in the Sur district in Diyarbakir on December 11, 2015. A policeman was killed by sniper fire on December 9, 2015 as he tried to defuse an explosive device in the Sur district of Diyarbakir province, which has been under military curfew for eight days. Turkey has been waging a relentless offensive against PKK strongholds in the southeast of the country and in northern Iraq following the collapse in July of a two-year truce with rebels. Ilyas AKENGIN / AFP
A boy shows bullets used during clashes between Kurdish fighters and Turkish special forces in the Sur district in Diyarbakir on December 11, 2015. - Sputnik International
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A boy shows bullets used during clashes between Kurdish fighters and Turkish special forces in the Sur district in Diyarbakir on December 11, 2015. A policeman was killed by sniper fire on December 9, 2015 as he tried to defuse an explosive device in the Sur district of Diyarbakir province, which has been under military curfew for eight days. Turkey has been waging a relentless offensive against PKK strongholds in the southeast of the country and in northern Iraq following the collapse in July of a two-year truce with rebels. Ilyas AKENGIN / AFP
© REUTERS / Sertac KayarPeople look out from a building which was damaged during the security operations and clashes between Turkish security forces and Kurdish militants, in Sur district of Diyarbakir, Turkey, December 11, 2015. REUTERS/Sertac Kayar
People look out from a building which was damaged during the security operations and clashes between Turkish security forces and Kurdish militants, in Sur district of Diyarbakir, Turkey, December 11, 2015. - Sputnik International
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People look out from a building which was damaged during the security operations and clashes between Turkish security forces and Kurdish militants, in Sur district of Diyarbakir, Turkey, December 11, 2015. REUTERS/Sertac Kayar
© AFP 2023 / Burent KilicA man carries his daughter past a destroyed tanker truck in the southeastern city of Nusaybin, on December 24, 2015, in Mardin province.
The number of Kurdish rebels killed in a massive Turkish military offensive in the restive southeast, a security source told AFP. The government has imposed curfews in the mainly Kurdish towns of Cizre and Silopi, Nusaybin as security forces battle militants linked to the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK). / AFP / BULENT KILIC
A man carries his daughter past a destroyed tanker truck in the southeastern city of Nusaybin, on December 24, 2015, in Mardin province. - Sputnik International
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A man carries his daughter past a destroyed tanker truck in the southeastern city of Nusaybin, on December 24, 2015, in Mardin province.
The number of Kurdish rebels killed in a massive Turkish military offensive in the restive southeast, a security source told AFP. The government has imposed curfews in the mainly Kurdish towns of Cizre and Silopi, Nusaybin as security forces battle militants linked to the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK). / AFP / BULENT KILIC
© REUTERS / Sertac KayarPeople look out from a building which was damaged during the security operations and clashes between Turkish security forces and Kurdish militants, in Sur district of Diyarbakir, Turkey, December 11, 2015. REUTERS/Sertac Kayar
People look out from a building which was damaged during the security operations and clashes between Turkish security forces and Kurdish militants, in Sur district of Diyarbakir, Turkey, December 11, 2015. - Sputnik International
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People look out from a building which was damaged during the security operations and clashes between Turkish security forces and Kurdish militants, in Sur district of Diyarbakir, Turkey, December 11, 2015. REUTERS/Sertac Kayar
© AFP 2023 / Ilyas AkenginA Kurdish fighter walks through barricads in the Sur district in Diyarbakir on December 11, 2015.
A policeman was killed by sniper fire on December 9, 2015 as he tried to defuse an explosive device in the Sur district of Diyarbakir province, which has been under military curfew for eight days. Turkey has been waging a relentless offensive against PKK strongholds in the southeast of the country and in northern Iraq following the collapse in July of a two-year truce with rebels.
/ AFP / Ilyas AKENGIN
A Kurdish fighter walks through barricads in the Sur district in Diyarbakir on December 11, 2015. - Sputnik International
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A Kurdish fighter walks through barricads in the Sur district in Diyarbakir on December 11, 2015.
A policeman was killed by sniper fire on December 9, 2015 as he tried to defuse an explosive device in the Sur district of Diyarbakir province, which has been under military curfew for eight days. Turkey has been waging a relentless offensive against PKK strongholds in the southeast of the country and in northern Iraq following the collapse in July of a two-year truce with rebels.
/ AFP / Ilyas AKENGIN
© AFP 2023 / Ilyas AkenginA girl stands at the entrance of a damaged house in the Sur district in Diyarbakir on December 11, 2015.
A policeman was killed on December 9, 2015 by sniper fire as he tried to defuse an explosive device in the Sur district of Diyarbakir province, which has been under military curfew for eight days. Turkey has been waging a relentless offensive against PKK strongholds in the southeast of the country and in northern Iraq following the collapse in July of a two-year truce with rebels.
/ AFP / Ilyas AKENGIN
A girl stands at the entrance of a damaged house in the Sur district in Diyarbakir on December 11, 2015. - Sputnik International
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A girl stands at the entrance of a damaged house in the Sur district in Diyarbakir on December 11, 2015.
A policeman was killed on December 9, 2015 by sniper fire as he tried to defuse an explosive device in the Sur district of Diyarbakir province, which has been under military curfew for eight days. Turkey has been waging a relentless offensive against PKK strongholds in the southeast of the country and in northern Iraq following the collapse in July of a two-year truce with rebels.
/ AFP / Ilyas AKENGIN
© REUTERS / Sertac KayarA man looks out of a building which was damaged during the security operations and clashes between Turkish security forces and Kurdish militants, in Sur district of Diyarbakir, Turkey
A man looks out of a building which was damaged during the security operations and clashes between Turkish security forces and Kurdish militants, in Sur district of Diyarbakir, Turkey - Sputnik International
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A man looks out of a building which was damaged during the security operations and clashes between Turkish security forces and Kurdish militants, in Sur district of Diyarbakir, Turkey
© AFP 2023 / STRINGERCo-chair of the pro-Kurdish People's Democratic Party (HDP) Selahattin Demirtas.
Co-chair of the pro-Kurdish People's Democratic Party (HDP) Selahattin Demirtas. - Sputnik International
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Co-chair of the pro-Kurdish People's Democratic Party (HDP) Selahattin Demirtas.
© AFP 2023Members of the Kurdish community flash the V for victiry sign during a demonstration in Sirnak
Members of the Kurdish community flash the V for victiry sign during a demonstration in Sirnak - Sputnik International
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Members of the Kurdish community flash the V for victiry sign during a demonstration in Sirnak
© AP Photo / Cagdas ErdoganPolice use teargas to disperse masked militants protesting the killing of Tahir Elci, a prominent lawyer and human rights defender, who faced a prison term on charges of supporting Kurdish rebels, in Istanbul, Turkey, late Saturday, Nov. 28, 2015
Police use teargas to disperse masked militants protesting the killing of Tahir Elci, a prominent lawyer and human rights defender, who faced a prison term on charges of supporting Kurdish rebels, in Istanbul, Turkey, late Saturday, Nov. 28, 2015 - Sputnik International
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Police use teargas to disperse masked militants protesting the killing of Tahir Elci, a prominent lawyer and human rights defender, who faced a prison term on charges of supporting Kurdish rebels, in Istanbul, Turkey, late Saturday, Nov. 28, 2015
© AFP 2023 / Bulent KilicPeople react as smoke billows from burning pallets set on fire during clashes between Turkish riot policemen and Kurdish protesters in the southeastern city of Diyarbakir on November 1, 2015 after first results of the Turkish general election showed a clear victory to the Justice and Development Party (AKP). Turkish police fired tear gas and water cannon at Kurds who were protesting after the election appeared to deliver a clear victory to AKP, an AFP photographer said. Latest results say the pro-Kurdish People's Democratic Party (HDP) won slightly over 10 percent of the vote, just enough to scrape into parliament.
People react as smoke billows from burning pallets set on fire during clashes between Turkish riot policemen and Kurdish protesters in the southeastern city of Diyarbakir on November 1, 2015 after first results of the Turkish general election showed a clear victory to the Justice and Development Party (AKP). Turkish police fired tear gas and water cannon at Kurds who were protesting after the election appeared to deliver a clear victory to AKP, an AFP photographer said. Latest results say the pro-Kurdish People's Democratic Party (HDP) won slightly over 10 percent of the vote, just enough to scrape into parliament. - Sputnik International
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People react as smoke billows from burning pallets set on fire during clashes between Turkish riot policemen and Kurdish protesters in the southeastern city of Diyarbakir on November 1, 2015 after first results of the Turkish general election showed a clear victory to the Justice and Development Party (AKP). Turkish police fired tear gas and water cannon at Kurds who were protesting after the election appeared to deliver a clear victory to AKP, an AFP photographer said. Latest results say the pro-Kurdish People's Democratic Party (HDP) won slightly over 10 percent of the vote, just enough to scrape into parliament.
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Turkish masked plain clothes police officer patrols a street during a clash between Kurdish activists and Turkish police in the historical Sur district on December 24,2015 in Diyarbakir
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Plainclothes policemen react during a protest following a funeral ceremony for Kurdish militants in the southeastern city of Diyarbakir, Turkey, December 24, 2015. REUTERS/Sertac Kayar
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Turkish riot police stand guard during a protest against the curfew in Sur district in the Kurdish dominated southeastern city of Diyarbakir, Turkey, December 6, 2015. REUTERS/Sertac Kayar
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The militants of the Kurdistan Workers' Party, or PKK, stand at a barricade in Sirnak, Turkey, late Wednesday, Dec. 23, 2015. Security forces have killed 183 Kurdish rebels in a week in southeast Turkey, news agencies reported. The government imposed curfews in the mainly Kurdish towns of Cizre, Silopi, Nusaybin and Sur district of Diyarbakir as the security forces battle militants linked to the PKK who have moved their fight for autonomy to some towns and city neighborhoods in southeastern Turkey. (AP Photo/Cagdas Erdogan)
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A militant of the Kurdistan Workers' Party, or PKK, stands at a barricade in Sirnak, Turkey, late Wednesday, Dec. 23, 2015. Security forces have killed 183 Kurdish rebels in a week in southeast Turkey, news agencies reported. The government imposed curfews in the mainly Kurdish towns of Cizre, Silopi, Nusaybin and Sur district of Diyarbakir as the security forces battle militants linked to the PKK who have moved their fight for autonomy to some towns and city neighborhoods in southeastern Turkey.(AP Photo/Cagdas Erdogan)
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Militants of the Kurdistan Workers' Party, or PKK, stand in a bunker in Sirnak, Turkey, late Wednesday, Dec. 23, 2015. Security forces have killed 183 Kurdish rebels in a week in southeast Turkey, news agencies reported. The government imposed curfews in the mainly Kurdish towns of Cizre, Silopi, Nusaybin and Sur district of Diyarbakir as the security forces battle militants linked to the PKK who have moved their fight for autonomy to some towns and city neighborhoods in southeastern Turkey. A poster of jailed PKK leader Abdullah Ocalan seen in the background.(AP Photo/Cagdas Erdogan)
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People carry the coffin of Medeni Orak, a man killed in Nusaybin, Turkey, Thursday, Dec. 24, 2015. Security forces have killed 183 Kurdish rebels in a week in southeast Turkey, news agencies reported. The government imposed curfews in the mainly Kurdish towns of Cizre, Silopi, Nusaybin and Sur district of Diyarbakir as the security forces battle militants linked to the PKK who have moved their fight for autonomy to some towns and city neighborhoods in southeastern Turkey.(AP Photo/Cagdas Erdogan)
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People look at buildings which were damaged during the security operations and clashes between Turkish security forces and Kurdish militants, in Sur district of Diyarbakir, Turkey, December 11, 2015. REUTERS/Sertac Kayar
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Turkish police carry caskets during a funeral ceremony on December 16, 2015 at the police headquarters in Diyarbakir, for three police officers who were killed during clashes with Turkish forces and Kurdish militants on December 15.
Three Turkish police officers were killed December 15 in a roadside bomb attack on their vehicle blamed on Kurdish rebels, security sources said, amid a new upsurge in violence in Turkey's troubled southeast. The three were killed in the Silvan district of the mainly Kurdish province of Diyarbakir as their armoured vehicle travelled on a main road, the security sources told AFP. Three other policemen were wounded.
/ AFP / ILYAS AKENGIN
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A woman walks past a building which was damaged during the security operations and clashes between Turkish security forces and Kurdish militants, in the southeastern town of Silvan in Diyarbakir province, Turkey, December 7, 2015. Picture taken December 7, 2015. REUTERS/Murad Sezer
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A relative grieves at the grave of Medeni Orak, killed in the southeastern city of Nusaybin, on December 24, 2015, in Mardin province.
The government has imposed curfews in the mainly Kurdish towns of Cizre and Silopi, Nusaybin as security forces battle militants linked to the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK). / AFP / BULENT KILIC
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A boy shows bullets used during clashes between Kurdish fighters and Turkish special forces in the Sur district in Diyarbakir on December 11, 2015. A policeman was killed by sniper fire on December 9, 2015 as he tried to defuse an explosive device in the Sur district of Diyarbakir province, which has been under military curfew for eight days. Turkey has been waging a relentless offensive against PKK strongholds in the southeast of the country and in northern Iraq following the collapse in July of a two-year truce with rebels. Ilyas AKENGIN / AFP
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People look out from a building which was damaged during the security operations and clashes between Turkish security forces and Kurdish militants, in Sur district of Diyarbakir, Turkey, December 11, 2015. REUTERS/Sertac Kayar
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A man carries his daughter past a destroyed tanker truck in the southeastern city of Nusaybin, on December 24, 2015, in Mardin province.
The number of Kurdish rebels killed in a massive Turkish military offensive in the restive southeast, a security source told AFP. The government has imposed curfews in the mainly Kurdish towns of Cizre and Silopi, Nusaybin as security forces battle militants linked to the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK). / AFP / BULENT KILIC
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People look out from a building which was damaged during the security operations and clashes between Turkish security forces and Kurdish militants, in Sur district of Diyarbakir, Turkey, December 11, 2015. REUTERS/Sertac Kayar
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A Kurdish fighter walks through barricads in the Sur district in Diyarbakir on December 11, 2015.
A policeman was killed by sniper fire on December 9, 2015 as he tried to defuse an explosive device in the Sur district of Diyarbakir province, which has been under military curfew for eight days. Turkey has been waging a relentless offensive against PKK strongholds in the southeast of the country and in northern Iraq following the collapse in July of a two-year truce with rebels.
/ AFP / Ilyas AKENGIN
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A girl stands at the entrance of a damaged house in the Sur district in Diyarbakir on December 11, 2015.
A policeman was killed on December 9, 2015 by sniper fire as he tried to defuse an explosive device in the Sur district of Diyarbakir province, which has been under military curfew for eight days. Turkey has been waging a relentless offensive against PKK strongholds in the southeast of the country and in northern Iraq following the collapse in July of a two-year truce with rebels.
/ AFP / Ilyas AKENGIN
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A man looks out of a building which was damaged during the security operations and clashes between Turkish security forces and Kurdish militants, in Sur district of Diyarbakir, Turkey
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Co-chair of the pro-Kurdish People's Democratic Party (HDP) Selahattin Demirtas.
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Members of the Kurdish community flash the V for victiry sign during a demonstration in Sirnak
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Police use teargas to disperse masked militants protesting the killing of Tahir Elci, a prominent lawyer and human rights defender, who faced a prison term on charges of supporting Kurdish rebels, in Istanbul, Turkey, late Saturday, Nov. 28, 2015
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People react as smoke billows from burning pallets set on fire during clashes between Turkish riot policemen and Kurdish protesters in the southeastern city of Diyarbakir on November 1, 2015 after first results of the Turkish general election showed a clear victory to the Justice and Development Party (AKP). Turkish police fired tear gas and water cannon at Kurds who were protesting after the election appeared to deliver a clear victory to AKP, an AFP photographer said. Latest results say the pro-Kurdish People's Democratic Party (HDP) won slightly over 10 percent of the vote, just enough to scrape into parliament.

More than 100,000 people have been displaced due to armed clashes between Turkish security forces and militants from the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) in the country's majority-Kurdish southeastern regions, Turkey's Interior Ministry said on Thursday.

People look out from a building which was damaged during the security operations and clashes between Turkish security forces and Kurdish militants, in Sur district of Diyarbakir, Turkey, December 11, 2015. - Sputnik International
Civilian Casualties Mount as Turkey Continues Assault on Kurds
Severe clashes between Ankara forces and PKK militants have been arising sporadically since a July terror attack in the city of Suruc, which killed over 30 people, most of them Kurds. After Kurds killed two Turkish policemen soon after the attack, Ankara launched a military campaign against the PKK. The clashes intensified earlier this week in the southeastern city of Diyarbakir.

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