Skip to main content
Jailed opposition leader warns of creeping fascism as Turkey appeals European Court ruling
Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu (centre) EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini (left) and EU Enlargement Commissioner Johannes Hahn speak during a joint press conference after their meeting, in Ankara last week. Mogherini on Thursday expressed ‘strong concerns’ over the continued detentions of academics and activists in Turkey

FORMER leader of the pro-Kurdish Turkish opposition People’s Democratic Party (HDP) Selahattin Demirtas warned today that his continued detention is an indication of “how grave the recent situation in Turkey is.”

He made a statement on social media following the announcement by Turkey’s Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu that Ankara is set to appeal against the recent European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) ruling that Mr Demirtas should be released from pre-trial detention where he has been held since November 2016.

Mr Demirtas said the government has failed to learn lessons from the court judgement and chooses instead to insist that it is not binding “because it does not want to leave aside such a sharp sword as the judiciary.”

The 95th Anniversary Appeal
Support the Morning Star
You have reached the free limit.
Subscribe to continue reading.
Similar stories
NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, center, participates in a media statement with European Council President Antonio Costa, left, and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen during the Nato summit in Ankara, Turkey, July 7, 2026
Turkey / 7 July 2026
7 July 2026

Israel angered after US president lifts sanctions on Turkey, opening way for potential sale of F-35 fighter jets

IRON HEEL: Police officers storm Turkey's main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) headquarters in Ankara on Sunday
Features / 26 May 2026
26 May 2026

CLAUDIA WEBBE looks at how Britain’s Nato ally has upped the stakes in its effort to silence domestic dissenting voices

Republican People's Party or (CHP) leader Ozgur Ozel gestures to party members during his speech during a CHP convention, in Ankara, April 6, 2025
Turkey / 22 May 2026
22 May 2026
ETHNIC STRIFE: Women condemn, yesterday, a video in circulation that allegedly shows a fighter affiliated with the Syrian government holding the braid of a Kurdish female fighter after killing her, in Qamishli, northeastern Syria
Middle East / 23 January 2026
23 January 2026

VIJAY PRASHAD details how US support for Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa allowed him to break the resistance of the autonomous Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF)