Kağızman district mayor Mehmet Alkan, who represents the pro-Kurdish DEM Party, has been removed and replaced in Turkey’s eastern province of Kars. Alkan was removed on charges of ‘membership in an armed terrorist organization’.

Alkan’s removal follows a wave of removals of democratically elected officials across Turkey in recent weeks. His removal also coincides with an ongoing Kurdish solution process which is expected to conclude in the near future.

Kağızman district governor Okan Daştan was appointed district mayor in Alkan’s place. According to an announcement by the Interior Ministry, Alkan’s removal is a ‘temporary measure’.

A statement released by the DEM Party described Alkan’s removal as a ‘usurpation of the Kağızman public’s will’.

Alkan has been sentenced to 6 years and 3 months in prison in the case. The mayor had previously been detained in 2019 on suspected links to the banned Kurdish Workers Party (PKK) before being released.

Alkan’s removal marks the tenth DEM Party-controlled municipality that has been purged since Turkey’s most recent

© Medyascope