Turkey detains medics for speaking against Syria offensive

Turkey considers the Kurdish militia it is fighting in Syria (Pixabay photo)

ANKARA, Turkey — Turkey’s state-run news agency says senior members of a medical association who spoke out against Ankara’s military offensive in a Syrian Kurdish enclave have been detained.

Anadolu Agency says the chief of the Turkish Medical Association and seven others were detained in Tuesday’s police operations for breach of Turkey’s anti-terror laws. It says prosecutors issued warrants for 11 members of the association.

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has accused association members of being “terrorist lovers” and his government has cracked down on criticism of the offensive. Turkey considers the Kurdish militia it is fighting in Syria an extension of the outlawed Kurdish rebels inside Turkey.

As many as 311 people were detained in the past week for allegedly engaging in “terrorist propaganda” through social media postings critical of the military operation.