JINHA

AMED – The general co-chair of the Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) Selahattin Demirtaş, speaking in front of the Diyarbakır HDP provincial building, has called on the people of the city to respond to the bomb attack in Diyarbakır at the polls.

With just two days to go until Turkey's June 7 election, hundreds of thousands were out at the massive HDP rally in Diyarbakır's İstasyon Square. As HDP general co-chair Selahattin Demirtaş was preparing to take to the stage, an explosion took place, followed immediately by a second. At least 20 are wounded. After the explosion, the general co-chair called on the people of the city not to engage in clashes with the police and instead to gather at the party's provincial building.

There, speaking from the top of a HDP bus, Selahattin Demirtaş gave a speech calling on HDP supporters to continue their elections preparations with full commitment. The crowd's chants of "the killer is Erdoğan" frequently interrupted his speech. He noted that the goal of attacks was to stop the HDP's rise.

"Whatever they do, let them do it. Peace will come in spite of this and it's you who will secure it," he said to the crowd. He said that the party would continue their work with the same enthusiasm and excitement they have displayed throughout their elections campaign in the less than 48 hours remaining until polls open.

"The HDP is not a party to fall for these kinds of traps," he said. The general co-chair thanked the people for their cool-headed response at the time of the bombing, which ensured that the attack did not turn into a massacre. "They wanted hundreds of thousands of people, women and children to stampede and trample each other," he said.

The general co-chair said that whether or not it emerges that the explosion was a coordinated attack, the investigation of the event would help all of Turkey relax and close the topic.

"We're struggling for humanity—we're on this road not just for us, but for all of Turkey to be able to breathe. When we set out on this road we knew that we'd encounter danger; we knew who wanted to stop our activities. The election before us will absolutely happen. The polls will be open. We will win; peace will win; freedom will win."

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