Several cities woke up to the day with detentions and operations before the referendum.

ADANA

20 addresses were simultaneously raided in the early morning hours. Neighborhoods were blockaded before the operation and some homes to be searched had their doors torn down with battering rams. Large numbers of books, flyers, newspapers, posters and computers have been seized in the searches and 14 people were detained. There is no information on the operation or its cause. The detainees were taken to the Provincial Security Directorate after their medical checks in the Forensic Medicine Institute.

Among the detainees are Mehmet Ataş, father of Eylem Ataş who lost her life fighting ISIS, and ESP members Aylin Yıldız and Mazlum Aydın.

The operation on leftist and socialist circles came before President Tayyip Erdoğan’s rally in Adana on April 7.

MERSİN

Leftist and socialist students’ homes were raided in Mezitli and Yenişehir districts in Mersin this morning. The police searched the houses and confiscated newspapers, flyers and computers. 15 people have reportedly been detained in the operation. There is no information on the cause.

The known detainees are: Gulsan Kaya, Nazlı Mansuroglu, ESP member Esra Güzel Ersoy, YDG members Hasret Mesrure Vurucu, Duygu Canıtez, Deniz Akbıyık, Yelda Öztürk, Halkevleri member Özlem Uslu, and two students named Özgür and Baran.

In the operation conducted yesterday in Mersin, 11 people including the HDP Akdeniz District Co-chair and HDP administrators had been detained. With the new detentions the number has risen to 26.

HATAY

Social Freedom Party Initiative (TÖPG) and People’s Assembly members were detained before the opening ceremonies to be held in Hatay on April 7 with Erdoğan.

Ali Öztürk, Onur Gezici, Mesut Soya, Mithatcan Türetken, Ahmet Doğan were detained from their homes and Serpil Kırdağ was taken from her place of work in the operations. Mahir Mansuroğlu and Doğuş Genç were not present at their addresses when their homes were raided.

İSTANBUL

Sevim Görücü and Adil Görücü were listening to Kurdish music in their home in Esenler, Istanbul when they were detained last night. The father and daughter were reported to the police for listening to music in Kurdish and the police detained them.

The father is expected to be referred to the Istanbul Courthouse in Çağlayan and the daughter to the Bakırköy Courthouse.

ERZURUM

In the Tekman district, City Council member Sebahattin Kılıç was detained in a house raid. Kılıç was taken from his home in Çiçekbağı neighborhood and was taken to the Provincial Security Directorate. No information is available on why he was detained.

DERSİM

13 people detained yesterday morning in house raids in Dersim were referred to the Tunceli Courthouse in the evening. After their statements in the prosecutor’s office, Volkan Çiçek was released and ESP Central Executive Council member İlke Başak Baydar, ESP Party Assemby member Beren Atıcı, HDP Party Assembly member Ali Ekber Kaya, HDP Province Administrator Hüseyin Dağdeviren, İHD Administrator Hüseyin Mavi, ESP members Hakan Kavut, Hasan Hüseyin Akyüz and Ali Haydar Eren, Hüseyin Arğal, İlkay Cem Işık, Sinan Sarıataş and Hasan Yıldız were referred to the court with a demand for their arrest.

The 12 people referred to court were arrested on charges of “aiding and abetting a terrorist organization” and sent to Elazığ Prison.

ESP CHAIR IN CUSTODY

Meanwhile, many ESP members were detained in raids directed toward the party yesterday all over Dersim. ESP Chair Çiçek Otlu is among the detainees who were taken to Dersim.