UPDATE - Turkey: AK Party member shot dead in Diyarbakir

UPDATES WITH NUMBER OF PEOPLE TAKEN INTO CUSTODY AND FUNERAL, EDITS THROUGHOUT

By Hasan Namli

DIYARBAKIR, Turkey (AA) – A local official of the ruling Justice and Development (AK) Party in southeastern Turkey was shot dead early Saturday, the party’s district chairman told Anadolu Agency.

Orhan Mercan, the AK Party’s deputy chairman in the Diyarbakir province's Lice district, was shot in front of his house in the Mulla neighborhood and pronounced dead at Lice State Hospital, according to district Chairman Ismail Demir.

Initial indications point to the terrorist PKK being responsible for the attack, Demir said, while investigations continue.

As part of the investigation, 11 suspects have been taken into custody, a security source said on condition of anonymity due to restrictions on talking to the media.

Mercan’s funeral service is being held today.

The PKK is listed as a terror organization by Turkey, the U.S., and the EU.

More than 1,200 victims, including security personnel and civilians, have lost their lives in PKK attacks in Turkey since the terror group resumed its decades-old campaign against the state in July 2015.