AMED – HDP parliamentary representatives Leyla Birlik province and Nursel Aydoğan have been imprisoned by the court in Şırnak after being arrested in police raids last night.

Last night, HDP parliamentary representatives Leyla Birlik (Şırnak province) and Nursel Aydoğan (Diyarbakır province) were arrested in Mardin last night and detained at the Şırnak Courthouse. They have now been placed in pre-trial detention. Leyla and Nursel, who have health problems, are also being prevented from receiving their medication.

As a delegation including HDP party directors, Party Assembly members, and parliamentary representatives Aycan İrmez and Mehmet Ali Arslan attempted to reach Şırnak, they were stopped by state forces at the İkizce Patrol Station earlier today.

“Attending our friends’ hearing is our most natural right,” said the delegation, making a statement outside the patrol station. “But right now, we are being unlawfully prevented from doing so. Our arrested friends Leyla Birlik and Nursel Aydoğan have health problems. The state forces are even stopping us from delivering medicine to them.”

While HDP Batman representative Mehmet Ali Arslan stressed that the arrests were not legally but politically motivated, HDP Şırnak representative Aycan İrmez stated that their constitutional right to follow the court proceedings was being prevented. In addition, she noted that state forces were preventing them from bringing Nursel and Leyla medicine for their health problems.

“With rights violations underway in this country, those responsible will absolutely be punished,” said Aycan.