The former mayor of Diyarbakır’s Sur district was detained over her links to the terrorist group PKK early Wednesday.
The pro-PKK Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) mayor Filiz Buluttekin was detained by Diyarbakır Police as part of an investigation into the PKK terrorist group’s urban structure.
She was brought to the police station for testimony.
Buluttekin was detained on charges of terrorist links, specifically for providing support and spreading propaganda, as well as participation in terrorist activities back in 2019.
She attended the funerals of PKK terrorists and expressed solidarity with the families, including terrorist Mehmet Yakışır, code-named "Zeynel," the assailant behind the murder of 15-year-old Eren Bülbül.
Buluttekin has been accused of embracing support for the terrorist group, who indiscriminately target civilians and security forces alike. On Dec. 4, 2017, Buluttekin attended the funeral of PKK terrorist Hamdusena Atala, who was killed in a counterterrorism operation in rural Bingöl. On March 17, she also attended the condolences ceremony of PKK terrorist Zülküf Gezen, who committed suicide while serving a jail sentence at Tekirdağ Prison. Furthermore, she participated in a pro-PKK rally protesting the detention of former Diyarbakır Metropolitan Mayor Adnan Selçuk Mızraklı.
An anonymous witness reportedly told security forces that Buluttekin was actively involved in the PKK's umbrella organization, the Kurdish Communities Union (KCK), and was receiving orders from terrorist Berivan Elter. She also attended a news conference about terrorist leader Abdullah Öcalan on Oct. 9, 2018, and a pro-PKK event on April 4, 2019.
Located inside the Diyarbakır Fortress and named after UNESCO-listed city walls second only to the Great Wall of China in length, the Sur district was once famous for its unique architecture, much of which has since been destroyed by terrorists since they unilaterally abandoned the reconciliation process with the Turkish government in the summer of 2015 and took to urban warfare.
It took Turkish security forces 103 days to eliminate the PKK from the district of Sur, carrying out an extensive operation with utmost attention to make sure no civilians were harmed during the process.
Around 4,500 families were forced to flee their homes, while hundreds of traders in the district were forced to shut down or relocate due to the onslaught of PKK terrorism in which homes, stores and other buildings in the area, including historic landmarks, were targeted indiscriminately.