15 suspected members of PKK affiliate arrested across Turkey

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region —  Fifteen suspected members of a Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) affiliated armed group were arrested in simultaneous raids carried out by Turkish security forces across four provinces on Friday, according to a statement from the Van governor’s office. 

The raids were ordered by Van Public Prosecutor’s Office against the Civil Protection Units (YPS) - an armed group which was created by the PKK in late 2015 and mostly consists of young people who carry out activities against Turkish security forces in urban areas. 

Van governor’s office said that the raids were carried out in the cities of Van, Sirnak, Ankara and Istanbul,  with 15 suspected members of the YPS arrested, the state-owned Anadolu Agency (AA) reported.

The PKK is an armed group struggling for the increased cultural and political rights of Kurds in Turkey. It is regarded as a terrorist organization by Ankara. 

Raids against the YPS are rare, as the group is not as active as it used to be.  It was created in December 2015 after the PKK restructured the Patriotic Revolutionary Youth Movement (YDG-H), very active in Kurdish-majority areas in southeast Turkey. The YPS carried out several attacks against Turkish security forces in 2016. 

The YPS claims that it only targets the interests of the Turkish state and the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP). 

Its members set alight a shoe factory in Istanbul on Saturday, the group claimed in a statement on Wednesday. They said the factory belonged to the AKP.

According to the latest figures from the International Crisis Group, updated on January 20, at least 5,229 people have been killed during PKK-Turkey clashes since July 20, 2015 when the short-lived peace process between both sides ended.