Turkey: Mothers sit-in protest against YPG/PKK growing

By Ahmet Kaplan

DIYARBAKIR, Turkey (AA) - One more mother has joined the sit-in protest against the YPG/PKK terror group’s child recruitment in Diyarbakir, southeast Turkey.

Blaming People’s Democratic Party (HDP) of kidnapping their children, a party also accused by the government of having links to the YPG/PKK; mothers of Diyarbakir started the sit-in protest in Diyarbakir office of the party on Sep. 3, 2019.

Mother Sevgi Cagmar, attending the sit in protest for his son Yavuz, said in her statement in Kurdish, that his son was a student in Sakarya, northwestern Turkey. Then he was kidnapped by the terrorists and taken to the mountain.

She said, "The HDP deceived my son. We had sent him to get a proper education. Why is it that they choose our children and not their own? We all want our children, that is why I joined the sit-in protest. We want HDP to bring back our kids."

Two more mothers joined the sit-in protest, as Kamile Kucukdag and Altun Bozkurt cried for their sons and wanted them to surrender to Turkish security forces.

Protest began Sept. 3 outside the offices of HDP in Diyarbakir when Fevziye Cetinkaya, Remziye Akkoyun, and Aysegul Bicer said their children was forcibly recruited by PKK terrorists.

The number of families protesting in front of the building has since increased.

In its more than 30-year terror campaign against Turkey, the PKK -- listed as a terrorist organization by Turkey, the U.S. and EU -- has been responsible for the deaths of 40,000 people, including women, children and infants.

The YPG is the PKK's Syrian offshoot.

*Writing by Firdevs Bulut