One Dead, Four Injured in Post-election Violence in Southeast Türkiye

People enjoy the view from the Galata Bridge, backdropped by the Suleymaniye Mosque, two days after the general elections, in Istanbul, Türkiye, 16 May 2023. (EPA)
People enjoy the view from the Galata Bridge, backdropped by the Suleymaniye Mosque, two days after the general elections, in Istanbul, Türkiye, 16 May 2023. (EPA)
TT

One Dead, Four Injured in Post-election Violence in Southeast Türkiye

People enjoy the view from the Galata Bridge, backdropped by the Suleymaniye Mosque, two days after the general elections, in Istanbul, Türkiye, 16 May 2023. (EPA)
People enjoy the view from the Galata Bridge, backdropped by the Suleymaniye Mosque, two days after the general elections, in Istanbul, Türkiye, 16 May 2023. (EPA)

The brother of an opposition candidate was killed and four other people injured in clashes between opponents and supporters of the newly elected ruling-party mayor of a city district in a predominantly Kurdish region of southeastern Türkiye.

Supporters of President Tayyip Erdogan's AK Party (AKP) clashed with backers of the opposition DEVA (Remedy) Party in the Pervari district of the city of Siirt on Tuesday night, following local elections on Sunday in which the opposition mostly performed well across Türkiye.

In the district, the AKP candidate for mayor won with 52% of the vote, while the DEVA candidate placed second with 40%.

The governor's office said five people had been hurt in the clashes, one of whom died of his wounds. The DEVA deputy chairman Mehmet Emin Ekmen identified the person who died as the brother of the party's candidate.

DEVA was one of six parties in the opposition alliance before May 2023 general elections when Erdogan secured another 5-year mandate and his ruling alliance a parliamentary majority.

Police are investigating the incident and six people were detained, the Siirt governor's office said, adding that it had imposed a curfew in Pervari district until Thursday morning for security reasons.

Protests also spread elsewhere in Türkiye's southeastern provinces on Tuesday night, after Turkish authorities prevented the newly elected mayor from the pro-Kurdish DEM party taking up his post in the city of Van, and announced a re-run vote in Sanilurfa's Hilvan district where AKP lost, Reuters reported.

Footage showed protesters in Batman province firing firecrackers at police, who sprayed them with water cannons, while scores of security personnel were stationed around Hakkari city, where protests also took hold.



Erdogan Says Türkiye Could Take Joint Steps with Elon Musk on Tech

Türkiye’s President and leader of Justice and Development (AK) Party Recep Tayyip Erdogan attends an election campaign rally in Istanbul on March 24, 2024, ahead of the March 31 municipal elections. (AFP)
Türkiye’s President and leader of Justice and Development (AK) Party Recep Tayyip Erdogan attends an election campaign rally in Istanbul on March 24, 2024, ahead of the March 31 municipal elections. (AFP)
TT

Erdogan Says Türkiye Could Take Joint Steps with Elon Musk on Tech

Türkiye’s President and leader of Justice and Development (AK) Party Recep Tayyip Erdogan attends an election campaign rally in Istanbul on March 24, 2024, ahead of the March 31 municipal elections. (AFP)
Türkiye’s President and leader of Justice and Development (AK) Party Recep Tayyip Erdogan attends an election campaign rally in Istanbul on March 24, 2024, ahead of the March 31 municipal elections. (AFP)

President Tayyip Erdogan said Türkiye could take joint steps with Elon Musk on technology if opportunities for cooperation in that field arise, broadcaster TRT Haber reported on Wednesday.
US President-elect Donald Trump on Tuesday named Musk to a role aimed at creating a more efficient government, handing even more influence to the world's richest man who donated millions of dollars to helping Trump get elected.
"Musk is a businessman who works in the space and technology field," Erdogan told reporters on a return flight from Baku. "Technology isn't a field you can advance on your own, you absolutely need some cooperation. In the event cooperation opportunities arise in this field, steps can be taken with Musk," he was cited as saying.