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ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - The Diyarbakir Bar Association is pursuing legal action against individuals who shared anti-Kurdish posts on social media following the deadly fire in Diyarbakir and Mardin.
“After the fires in Diyarbakir and Mardin, a criminal complaint was filed with the Diyarbakir chief public prosecutor's office against those who made insulting and hate-filled posts about Kurdish identity on social media accounts,” read a statement from the bar association.
Following the fire on Thursday, many social media users published racist anti-Kurdish posts. The blaze erupted in predominantly Kurdish provinces and the majority of victims were Kurds.
Posts included phrases like, "Good thing those who died were not Turks," and "Share without censoring please, we can't enjoy like this," in response to a video of a child crying for help in Kurdish.
The complaints were filed for “openly inciting or insulting the public to hatred and hostility.”
The fire killed 12 people and injured 78 others, according to Turkish Health Minister Fahrettin Koca. Five people were in intensive care as of Saturday.
State media Anadolu Agency reported that the fire broke out in the area between Diyarbakir’s (Amed) Cinar district and Mardin’s Mazidagi district. The farmers were burning stubble when the blaze became uncontrollable due to the wind.
Turkish officials have been criticized for their late intervention.
“The initial information from the region indicates that the state was delayed in responding to the fire,” read a statement from the pro-Kurdish Peoples’ Equality and Democracy Party (DEM Party) on Friday.
DEM Party also rejected the statements by the Diyarbakir governor’s office which indicated that the blaze erupted due to stubble burning saying that the claim was “contested by those who experienced the disaster firsthand and by villagers, who stated that the fire was caused by electrical wires falling to the ground, which had not been repaired for years.”
DEM Party called for investigations to be launched regarding the fire, adding that “the damages and losses of the affected villagers should be assessed and compensated.”
The fire also killed hundreds of livestock in the area, according to Munir Karaoglu, deputy Turkish interior minister.
“In the fire, 556 small livestock perished. With the consent of the citizens, 250 injured animals were sent to the Meat and Fish Authority for slaughter. Additionally, 120 animals have been treated in the area with the support of our veterinarians and our faculty,” Karaoglu told journalists after attending the funeral of his uncle and nephew who died in the fire.
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