Turkey imposes new curfew in Cizre

Turkish authorities on Sunday imposed a new curfew in the southeastern city of Cizre to arrest suspected Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) militants, just two days after lifting an identical order.

"To ensure the security of our people's lives and property during the arrest of members of the Separatist Terror Organisation, a curfew has been announced from 7:00 pm (1600 GMT) until further notice," said the statement from the office of the Sirnak region's governor Ali Ihsan Su using the usual official phrase for the PKK.

The Turkish authorities had on Friday evening ended a nine-day curfew in Cizre which had raised fears over the humanitarian situation in the city.

The Turkish government said that up to 32 Kurdish militants were killed during the previous curfew imposed in Cizre in an "anti-terror" operation against suspected members of the PKK.

But the pro-Kurdish Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) has said 21 civilians were dead after the operation, which deprived residents of access to essential amenities and triggered food shortages.

The announcement of the new curfew came after thousands of relatives and mourners marched through the centre of the mainly-Kurdish city Sunday to bury over a dozen people who lost their lives during the nine-day curfew.

Source: AFP