Short after Turkish President Tayyip Erdoğan threatened the Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) regarding Turkey’s invasion operation against Afrin, Ankara Chief Public Prosecutor launched an investigation against HDP Spokesperson Ayhan Bilgen and HDP Deputy Co-Chair Nadir Yıldırım due to their statements and social media posts about the Afrin operation.

HDP Van MP Nadir Yıldırım is accused of “inciting people to hatred, animosity and crime” for saying the following in a Twitter post: “Attempt to invade Afrin means an all-out attack and war against the Kurdish people. Silence is to accept dishonor. It is time to go into action.”

HDP Kars MP Ayhan Bilgen is also accused of “inciting people to hatred, animosity and crime” for saying the following in a Twitter post: “Despite the fact that there is no attack from Afrin against Turkey, an operation on Afrin will drag the country into a civil war should it succeed and prepare the ground for a coup should it fail.”

Diyarbakır Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office also engaged in immediate legal action after DTK (Democratic Society Congress), HDP, TJA (Free Women’s Movement) and DBP (Democratic Regions’ Party) organized a demonstration in protest at the attacks on Afrin, which was, however, intervened by the police. The Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office started an investigation against DTK Co-chair Leyla Güven for “inciting people to hatred, animosity and crime”.

Earlier today, Erdoğan uttered the following threat in connection with the invasion operation on Afrin; “Whoever takes to the streets on the call of HDP, KCK and PKK should know that our security forces will keep a tight rein on them and they will pay a heavy price.”