JINHA

NEWS CENTER – Racist groups continued to attack Kurds and buildings of the left Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) in cities across western Turkey last night. In some areas, Kurds formed self-defense units to deter the racist mobs.

In the Karabağlar district of the Aegean province of İzmir, a group of around 200 racists attacked the local HDP building. Around 25 were trapped inside as racists threw stones at the building and broke the windows. Locals attempted to head to the scene to offer support to the trapped HDP activists, but police closed off the road with armored vehicles. The HDP activists managed to escape, but clashes spread into the side streets of the area.

In Istanbul, a racist group set fire to the HDP’s district office in the Ataşehir area. HDP activists said that they had warned the local police that an attack was possible, but police had taken no precautions. Racists also attacked HDP buildings in the provinces of Bartın and Kocaeli and in multiple areas of Istanbul.

In the face of the racists attacks, Kurds took up self-defense. In the Tuzluçayır neighborhood of Ankara, youth took to the streets to defend the area. While police attacked the Kurds with tear gas, racists attacked with stones and bats. Clashes continued in the back streets of the area.

Last night was a tense one for Kurds in the province of Bursa. Racist groups launched attacks in Kurds in several areas across the province, setting fire to the Gemlik HDP building for the second time. Kurdish youth in the Yıldırım and Osmangazi areas decided to defend their neighborhoods, driving out racists attempting to raid Kurdish homes and businesses. In Osmangazi, youths held a vigil with bats at the entrance to the neighborhood until morning.

(ekip/fk/cm)