According to media reports, the dead body was that of Hacı Lokman Birlik, the brother-in-law of pro-Kurdish Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) Şırnak deputy Leyla Birlik. Hacı Lokman Birlik was killed on Friday in a clash between members of the terrorist Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) and Turkish security forces in Şırnak.

Sharing a photo of the incident on his Twitter account, HDP Co-chair Selahattin Demirtaş wrote on Sunday: “Look at this photo closely. It was taken the day before yesterday in Şırnak. Nobody should forget this and we will never forget it.”

Pro-Justice and Development Party (AK Party) figures claimed on Sunday that the photos were fabricated and that they were intentionally served to the media by PKK sympathizers to create a negative public perception about the AK Party government. However, the same figures claimed later the same day that the body had been tied to the police car in case the body was booby-trapped. The pro-government Akşam daily claimed on Sunday afternoon that dragging bodies in such a way was a “routine practice” that is performed across the world as a security precaution.

Akşam’s report also claimed that dead bodies suspected of being booby-trapped are dragged by people holding ropes if the body is found in a rural area but if the body is found in a residential area, the body is pulled by a police car to protect locals. No official statement has yet been made about the photos.

Birlik was buried after a funeral on Saturday in the Dicle neighborhood in Şırnak. HDP Şırnak deputies Leyla Birlik, Faysal Sarıyıldız and Aycan İrmez attended the funeral.

Speaking to reporters following the funeral, Leyla Birlik’s husband, Mehmet Birlik, said that they will not surrender to the AK Party despite all the pressure it is putting on Kurdish people. Sarıyıldız also told the press that it was “the barbarism of the AK Party that killed Birlik.”

In the meantime, the Interior Ministry announced on Sunday afternoon that it has launched an investigation over the photos. In a written statement, the ministry said that all the claims regarding the photos will be investigated by the ministry.

Source: Zaman