{"id":151589,"date":"2026-08-24T17:21:14","date_gmt":"2026-08-24T17:21:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/dk\/151589\/"},"modified":"2026-08-24T17:21:14","modified_gmt":"2026-08-24T17:21:14","slug":"kurdish-seasonal-workers-targeted-threatened-in-2-incidents-in-northwest-turkey","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/dk\/151589\/","title":{"rendered":"Kurdish seasonal workers targeted, threatened in 2 incidents in northwest Turkey"},"content":{"rendered":"

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More than 70 Kurdish seasonal farmworkers and their family members were targeted<\/a> in Zonguldak over the course of two days, while another group was threatened<\/a> in neighboring D\u00fczce, prompting calls from rights groups and opposition politicians for investigations into whether the incidents were ethnically motivated, Turkish media reported.<\/p>\n

The first incident took place on Friday and Saturday in Zonguldak\u2019s Alapl\u0131 district, where seasonal workers from the southeastern province of \u015e\u0131rnak had traveled to harvest hazelnuts. A group of locals attacked the workers, prompting gendarmes to intervene. Later that evening, their vehicles were pelted with stones as they returned from the fields, with children among those inside.<\/p>\n

Newroz Uysal Aslan, a lawmaker from the pro-Kurdish Peoples\u2019 Equality and Democracy Party (DEM Party), called on authorities to ensure the workers\u2019 safety and investigate the attack.<\/p>\n

\u203c\ufe0fMedyaya yans\u0131yan g\u00f6r\u00fcnt\u00fcler ve kamuoyunda olu\u015fan hakl\u0131 kayg\u0131 \u00fczerine bu a\u00e7\u0131klamay\u0131 yapma gere\u011fi duyuyoruz.<\/p>\n

\ud83d\udccdZonguldak\u2019\u0131n Alapl\u0131 il\u00e7esine ba\u011fl\u0131 Bekta\u015fl\u0131 k\u00f6y\u00fcne mevsimlik f\u0131nd\u0131k i\u015f\u00e7isi olarak \u00e7al\u0131\u015fmak \u00fczere Cizre ve Silopi\u2019den giden 70\u2019ten fazla i\u015f\u00e7i ve ailelerinin d\u00fcn\u2026<\/p>\n

\u2014 Newroz Uysal Aslan (@newroz_uysal) August 22, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n

The Human Rights Association (\u0130HD) called on authorities to investigate whether the attack was racially motivated, citing reports of derogatory remarks directed at the workers over their Kurdish identity.<\/p>\n

Zonguldak\u2019\u0131n Alapl\u0131 il\u00e7esinde mevsimlik K\u00fcrt tar\u0131m i\u015f\u00e7ilerine y\u00f6nelik \u0131rk\u00e7\u0131 sald\u0131r\u0131ya ili\u015fkin a\u00e7\u0131klamam\u0131z\ud83d\udc47 pic.twitter.com\/ThZZPN7ScX<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 \u0130HD-Irk\u00e7\u0131l\u0131k ve Ayr\u0131mc\u0131l\u0131\u011fa Kar\u015f\u0131 Komisyon (@irkciliga_karsi) August 23, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n

The Lawyers for Freedom Association (\u00d6HD) said the workers had been targeted because of their Kurdish identity and called on authorities to investigate the alleged racist motive and identify those responsible.<\/p>\n

ZONGULDAK\u2019TA K\u00dcRT \u0130\u015e\u00c7\u0130LERE Y\u00d6NEL\u0130K IRK\u00c7I SALDIRIYI KINIYORUZ !<\/p>\n

\u015e\u0131rnak\u2019\u0131n Cizre ve Silopi il\u00e7elerinden Zonguldak\u2019\u0131n Alapl\u0131 il\u00e7esine mevsimlik tar\u0131m i\u015f\u00e7isi olarak giden K\u00fcrt i\u015f\u00e7iler ve aileleri \u0131rk\u00e7\u0131 sald\u0131r\u0131ya u\u011fram\u0131\u015ft\u0131r.<\/p>\n

K\u00fcrt meselesinin demokratik ve bar\u0131\u015f\u00e7\u0131l \u00e7\u00f6z\u00fcm\u00fcn\u00fcn\u2026 pic.twitter.com\/chh2iIFyQk<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 \u00d6zg\u00fcrl\u00fck i\u00e7in Hukuk\u00e7ular Derne\u011fi (@ohdgenelmerkez) August 23, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n

Justice Minister Ak\u0131n G\u00fcrlek described<\/a> the incident as isolated and said a criminal investigation had been launched. The Zonguldak Governor\u2019s Office also disputed claims that the workers had been targeted because of their identity. Four people were detained in connection with the incident. One was released after questioning, while three were released under judicial supervision.<\/p>\n

In neighboring D\u00fczce, Kurdish seasonal farmworkers from the southeastern province of Mardin said a group approached the house where they were staying and threatened them, with one of the men pulling a knife and telling them to leave the area.<\/p>\n

Police detained the man who allegedly wielded the knife, and he was subsequently arrested. The D\u00fczce Governor\u2019s Office denied that the workers had been targeted because of their\u00a0 identity, describing the incident as an isolated public-order matter.<\/p>\n

In a statement on the two incidents, the DEM Party called<\/a> for effective investigations, saying the attacks reflected a racist and discriminatory mindset and should not be dismissed as isolated incidents.<\/p>\n

Similar attacks on Kurdish seasonal workers have been reported in Turkey in previous years.<\/p>\n

In 2023 three seasonal workers from the southeastern province of Siirt were attacked and injured<\/a> by a group of locals in the southwestern resort town of Bodrum, allegedly for speaking Kurdish.<\/p>\n

In 2020 a group of 16 Kurdish seasonal farmworkers from Mardin were attacked<\/a> while harvesting hazelnuts in the northwestern province of Sakarya. The workers said they had been targeted because they were Kurdish, while local authorities denied that the incident was ethnically motivated. In a separate incident that year, 19-year-old Kurdish seasonal worker \u015eirin Tosun was shot dead in Sakarya in an attack reportedly triggered by his speaking Kurdish with friends.<\/p>\n

Reports of attacks targeting Kurds in Turkey have continued, including incidents allegedly motivated by their ethnic identity<\/a> and attacks on people for speaking Kurdish or listening to Kurdish music. Similar allegations have also involved members of the security forces<\/a>.<\/p>\n