Historic mosque near Tahir Elçi murder scene set on fire

A historic mosque near the murder scene of prominent lawyer Tahir Elçi in the southeastern province of Diyarbak?r has been set on fire during clashes between security forces and outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) militants.

The Kur?unlu Mosque, a 500-year-old mosque built during the Ottoman era, caught fire yesterday during clashes in Sur, a historical district in Diyarbak?r where Diyarbak?r Bar Association head Tahir Elçi along with two police officers were killed in a shootout on Nov. 28. Firefighters were reportedly unable to extinguish the fire because of the nearby clashes.

The state-run Anadolu Agency reported that the mosque caught fire when PKK militants attacked the historic artifact with hand grenades and that militants had previously attacked the mosque with long-barreled weapons causing severe damage to its gate, outer walls and windows. 

The indeterminate curfew in Sur, meanwhile, was set to enter its seventh day today, with military operations reportedly ongoing to clear the town of militants.

Having been subjected to several curfews so far, Sur once more hit the headlines in late November when Elçi was shot dead on Nov. 28 as he coincidentally delivered a press statement to condemn special forces teams for damaging the base of Diyarbak?r's famous Four-Legged Minaret.

No steps taken in Elçi's murder, HDP says

The incident came as a Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) deputy said Turkey's judiciary had thus far failed to take steps to bring the perpetrators of Elçi's murder to light.

"The judiciary has so far not taken any step to solve the killing of Elçi. Step by step, it is paving the path to impunity," said Meral Dan?? Be?ta?, an Adana deputy and co-deputy chair of the HDP, said...