A demonstration organised by the pro-Kurdish Peoples’ Equality and Democracy (DEM) Party in İstanbul to protest Turkish-backed jihadist proxies’ attacks on northwest Syria was violently suppressed by police. The protest highlighted the ongoing assaults on Kurdish-majority cities in the region, which have led to widespread displacement and reports of atrocities.
According to the DEM Party, over 50 demonstrators, including activists and party members, were detained during the protest. Eyewitness accounts and videos shared online showed police officers using excessive force to disperse the crowd, raising serious concerns about the violation of the right to peaceful assembly.
The DEM Party spokesperson strongly condemned the police crackdown, accusing the government of trampling on democratic freedoms and suppressing dissent. “The Turkish state not only supports the atrocities committed by its jihadist proxies in Syria but also silences those who dare to protest these inhumane acts,” the spokesperson said during a statement following the arrests.
Criticising the government’s foreign policy, the spokesperson labelled the support for jihadist proxies as a “shameful and destabilising strategy” that perpetuates violence in the region. “This government has chosen to side with war criminals instead of peace and justice,” they added.
The demonstration came in response to recent offensives by Turkish-backed groups in northwest Syria, which have targeted Kurdish-majority cities such as Shahba (Şehba) and Tel Rifaat (Til Rifat). Activists allege that these jihadist groups, including Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) and the rebel Syrian National Army (SNA), have committed serious human rights violations, including the abduction of women and the forced displacement of thousands.
The protest in İstanbul was part of a broader effort to raise awareness of the situation and call for an end to Turkey’s military involvement in Syria.
The DEM Party has demanded the immediate release of all detained protesters and called on international organisations to address Turkey’s suppression of democratic freedoms. “Silencing voices of peace and justice will not absolve the state of its complicity in crimes against humanity,” the party declared.
