16 held in southeastern Turkey post mayor arrest

DIYARBAKIR, Turkey (AA) – Sixteen people were held in southeastern Turkey’s Diyarbakir province Wednesday following the arrest of Mayor Gultan Kisanak and Democratic Regions Party counselor Firat Anli Tuesday night, according to the regional prosecutor's office.

Kisanak has been accused of “being a member of terror organization”, while Anli has been charged with "separating a part of country’s territory from the state”.

Diyarbakir’s chief public prosecutor issued orders to detain 22 people, including municipality workers for carrying materials for making cemeteries, using municipality’s machinery and opening water wells for terrorists.

The search for the remaining six suspects continues.

The PKK -- listed as a terrorist organization by Turkey, the U.S., and EU -- resumed its decades-old armed campaign in July last year.

Since then, PKK terrorist attacks have martyred more than 700 security personnel and also claimed the lives of many civilians, including women and children, while more than 8,000 PKK terrorists were killed in military operations.