Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) deputies have condemned the attacks on peoples of Roboski and on the HDP Şırnak deputy Ferhat Encü at a press conference.

HDP deputies Aycan İrmez, Sezai Temelli and Hatice Sevim Tekin held a press conference to raise their protest at the increasing attacks of the Turkish soldiers in the last 10 days which targeted the people of Roboski and the HDP Şırnak deputy Ferhat Encü yesterday.

The MPs recalled that attacks on Roboski people are continuing despite the fact that no concrete steps have been taken yet to expose those responsible for the massacre of 34 Kurdish civilians, mostly children, in an airstrike of the Turkish army in the village on 28 December 2011.

HDP deputies said these attacks are targeting the lives of not only the people but their animals as well, as dozens of mules in the village have been murdered recently, and added that the aim of the attacks is to intimidate the people to make them abandon their struggle to call the perpetrators of the massacre to account.

The HDP deputies further stressed that as Turkish authorities want to empty the village and force people to leave their houses, attacks increase against the local people who do not want to leave and resist against the pressure of Turkish military forces.

The MPs stated that many people were wounded in the attacks which have intensely increased in the last 10 days and recalled that İsa Encu was shot in the belly and taken under operation, while 4 children at the ages of 12-15 were detained. Random fires have been opened on the houses and animals of the local people, while there has been no investigation launched into these attacks despite the continuous media coverage. HDP deputies added that the irresponsible attitudes of the responsible authorities courage the security forces further to continue their attacks in the region.

The statement of the deputies also recalled that HDP deputy for Şırnak, Ferhat Öncü, who was also at the scene in order to contribute to the solution of the problem on 7 July and helped the villagers as they left the plateau was targeted by a tear gas canister thrown into his vehicle on his way back to the village together with the villagers.

Moreover, soldiers opened fire on Encü after he got off the vehicle and bullets went over his head, said the deputies, noting that soldiers arguing that his deputyship was not valid there insulted him as he presented himself and tried to talked to them. Encü sustained an injury on the head as soldiers continued attacking him when he insistently continued to remind the law to the them, said the HDP MPs.

The HDP deputies called for immediate investigation into the attack and underlined that legal procedures must be implemented against the military officers involved. “We call on the President of the Parliament, Minister of Internal Affairs, Minister of Defence, Şırnak Governor and Şırnak Public Prosecutor to undertake their duty. The security of the people in Roboski must be immediately ensured and the security forces engaged in criminal acts in the region must be probed and laid off from job”, said the deputies and vowed to continue to call the perpetrators of Roboski massacre to account and do their best in order that those behind the massacre be put on trial.