Top Turkish court issues new arrest warrants for jailed ex-leaders of pro-Kurdish party

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region — Turkish authorities issued new arrest warrants for the jailed former leaders of the Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP), adding another obstacle to the pro-Kurdish party’s hopes to see them released. 

Selahattin Demirtas and Figen Yuksekdag have been in jail since November 2016, on terror-related charges and for allegedly inciting protests against the Turkish government in October 2014 after the country blocked its borders with the Kurdish People’s Protection Units (YPG) in northern Syria when the group was attacked by Islamic State (ISIS) in Kobane. 
 
On Wednesday, the European Parliament called for their unconditional release, but on Friday, the Ankara public prosecutor’s office issued new arrest warrants for them, according to Demirtas.

“I and Ms Figen have already been on trial for three years over 6-7 October incident. This morning,  Ankara Public Prosecutor’s Office issued arrest warrants for me and Ms Figen in a separate investigation on the same charges in violation of law, issuing our arrest warrants,” Demirtas said in a rare tweet on late Friday.

Turkey considers the PKK a “terrorist” organization and the YPG - which controls most of the northeastern Syria - the Syrian offshoot of the group. The YPG denies this, but acknowledges the influence of jailed PKK founder Abdullah Ocalan on its ideology.
 
Demirtas and Yuksekdag attended their trial on Friday via video, according to the state-owned Anadolu Agency (AA). The two co-led the party from 2014 until 2018 when they were replaced following their incarceration.

At the trial, Demirtas defiantly told the judges that "The verdict is evident anyway, but I will still say a few words for the record,” according to the independent news outlet Bianet.
 
The HDP condemned the decision, claiming it violates universal laws.
 
“The decision to re-arrest Demirtas and Yuksekdag is yet a further violation of fundamental principles of universal law. The government’s schemes against democratic politics continue. We will never surrender to such practices of enemy-law, or to coup plans against democracy,” it said in a tweet. 
 
Demirtas claimed in his Friday tweets that there is “no justice” for anyone in Turkey, but added that despite this, he and Yuksekdag are “strong.”

The verdict follows a resolution by the European Parliament which was adopted on Wednesday and “condemns the continued arrest” of Demirtas, calling on Turkish authorities to allow his “immediate and unconditional release.”

The European Court of Human Rights’ Grand Chamber also held a hearing for Demirtas’ case on Wednesday, but it did not make any decisions, leaving it for a later hearing. 

Hope for Demirtas’ release was sparked earlier this month when an Ankara high court ordered the conditional release of Demirtas on September 2 if he is “not convicted for other crimes.” A higher court backed the decision a week later.

Emboldened by these developments in his case, Demirtas' optimistic lawyers began preparing paperwork for the release of the leader, but Friday's decision will be a setback.

Nuray Ozdogan, one of the lawyers of the former HDP heads , told Bianet that the judges have not acquired any new evidence against the leaders. 
 
“There is no new evidence, there is no new allegation. The only difference is that they were demanded to be penalized for 'enmity and hatred'. This time, their testimonies were taken on articles such as 'crimes against the security of the state' and 'causing damage to property'. They say, 'We forgot to take their depositions for that back then'. It is what happened,” she said.

Following a failed coup in July 2016, which Erdogan blamed on cleric Fethullah Gulen, the Turkish government clamped down on dissidents including Demirtas , Yuksekdag and a number of HDP lawmakers and members, despite the party’s condemnation of the putsch.