HDP Ardahan deputy Taşkın Aktaş strongly reacted against the attribution of Turkish soldiers’ attack on a civil minibus of local people in Gundik (Koyunlu) village of Ardahan’s Göle district to the PKK. Aktaş said that the Turkish army was deploying troops in the region for 3 days and these soldiers opened fire on local people who were on their way from their village to a plateau. Aktaş stated that state officials distort what they and eyewitnesses have seen.

Following the statement of the Ardahan governor who accused the PKK for the attack on a civil minibus, the entire Turkish media covered the incident as if had been carried out by the PKK, while the eyewitness testimonies clearly state that Turkish soldiers carried out the armed attack which left 1 person dead and 2 others wounded, including one critically.

HDP Ardahan deputy Taşkın Aktaş visited the crime scene, talked to eyewitnesses and told DIHA about his impressions from the scene. Aktaş drew attention to the military deployment in the area that had been going on for 3 days before the incident and added: “The soldiers in the operation area opened fire on a civil minibus carrying local people who were going to a picnic”.

Aktaş stressed that there has been no guerrilla activity in the area and said eyewitnesses as well as the wounded in the incident report that it was the soldiers who rained bullets on the minibus. Aktaş said the authorities were distorting the eyewitness testimonies and told that he had a meeting with the Ardahan governor who has accused the PKK for the incident. Aktaş protested this accusation by saying that the authorities treat people as if they were fools.

Aktaş said he would carry the incident to the parliament and added that this incident was a sign of further provocation plans that may be put into action in the coming days.