The pro-Kurdish People's Democratic Party (HDP) mayors of the Kurdish-majority Hakkari, Yuksekova, Ercis and Nusaybin, districts near Turkey's borders with Syria and Iraq, were detained over terrorism links, the HDP and Anadolu news agency said, without elaborating. While most of Turkey's opposition parties have backed the operation, the HDP has called for it to stop, describing it as an "invasion attempt". HDP says the operation was an attempt by the government to drum up support amid declining public backing. The HDP said 151 of its members, including district officials, had been detained over the past week since Turkey and its Syrian rebel allies launched the assault. More than 300 people were detained for social media posts criticising Turkey's offensive into northern Syria in January 2018.

Source: bd News24 October 15, 2019 09:22 UTC