Some 11 people arrested in Istanbul after dancing halay to Kurdish music

Duvar English

Turkish police detained 18 people after they danced halay to Kurdish music in Istanbul’s Arnavutköy, Esenyurt, and Gaziosmanpaşa districts.

They were detained over allegedly making “terrorist organization propaganda.”

An Istanbul court arrested 11 people out of 18 over the same charge. The remaining seven people were released under judicial control measures, Mesopotamia News Agency reported on July 28.

After an increase in such detention and arrests, veteran Kurdish politician Leyla Zana recently said in a social media post, “Don't push the Kurds to their limits! If you are thinking of taking us all to the fields and squares with Kurdish songs, and slogans, we are all for it!”

Meanwhile, 14 provincial bar associations criticized such detentions on July 28, saying the judiciary should protect fundamental rights and freedoms and not be a party to social media lynching.

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