The ‘Kobane trial’ continues with former and current Peoples’ Democratic Party’s (HDP’s) politicians being accused of being responsible for the 6-8 October 2014 mass protests that took place across mainly Kurdish provinces in Turkey after the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) attacked the Syrian Kurdish border town of Kobane.
The fifth day of the trial of the Kobane case, in which 108 people – including the former Co-Chairs of the Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) Figen Yüksekdağ and Selahattin Demirtaş, and the former Co-Chair of the Democratic Regions Party (DBP) Sebahat Tuncel – stand accused, commenced at Ankara’s 22nd High Criminal Court, Jin News reports.
Speaking at the trial hearing, Sebahat Tuncel spoke about the armed attack on 17 June in the HDP’s İzmir Provincial Organisation building which led to the killing of Deniz Poyraz, an HDP party worker.
Tuncel strongly condemned Deniz Poyraz’s murder and stated: “Yesterday, once again, we witnessed a terrible political murder. Our İzmir provincial building was raided by a person. A young friend of ours, Deniz Poyraz, was murdered. We know this is not the first time. As those on trial here, we want this to be the end. We offer our condolences to Deniz’s family, our party, Turkey and the Kurdish people.”