HDP says member abducted by individuals claiming to be intel agents in Turkey's southeast

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The Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) has said that one of its Central Executive Board (MYK) members was abducted in the southeastern province of Diyarbakır by individuals claiming to be National Intelligence Organization (MİT) members.

According to the HDP, Serhat Aktemur was abducted and tortured in a forest area.

"None of our members are alone! We'll call those responsible to account and won't let this incident go," said the Kurdish issue-focused party in a tweet on Sept. 18.

MYK Üyemiz Serhat Aktemur, Diyarbakır’da kendisini MİT mensubu olarak tanıtan kişilerce kaçırılmış, işkenceye uğramış ve ormanlık alanda bırakılmıştır. Hiçbir üyemiz yalnız değildir! Bu çete davranışının hesabını mutlaka soracağız ve olayın peşini bırakmayacağız. pic.twitter.com/LTRPIWONDW

— HDP (@HDPgenelmerkezi) September 18, 2020

Aktemur said that the three individuals in question threatened to kill him by saying, "If we see you around, we'll shoot you."

He also said that he was put in a car by force by the individuals who showed him their cards with MİT written on and that he was unable to get out of the car.

One of the alleged MİT officials was named Nihat, who threatened the MYK member to not speak to the press and to not apply to the Human Rights Association (İHD), Aktemur said.

On Sept. 21, Aktemur applied to the Diyarbakır branch of the Human Rights Association (İHD) to get legal support concerning the violence he was exposed to. HDP Diyarbakır deputy Dersim Dağ as well as HDP provincial co-chairs Hülya Alökmen Uyanık and Zeyat Ceylan were present during Aktemur's meeting with İHD Diyarbakır branch president Abdullah Zeytun.

Aktemur will reportedly file a criminal complaint with the prosecutor's office concerning the issue.

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