Turkey's lawmakers urge restart of talks in Kurdish issue amid clashes

Deputies from both opposition and ruling parties have urged a resumption of the peace process through dialogue amid renewed clashes in the southeast, with one Republican People's Party (CHP) MP saying "low-intensity warfare is continuing" in the region.

CHP Deputy Chairman Sezgin Tanr?kulu called on parties on Dec. 21 to "open a new way in parliament" for dialogue instead of clashes.

Turkey cannot solve the Kurdish problem with either ditches or tanks, he said, calling for a third way. The deputy delivered his remarks during a visit to the Sur district of southeastern Diyarbak?r province where security forces and the youth organization of outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) have been clashing for weeks. 

The CHP is ready for dialogue for the resumption of talks, Tanr?kulu said, calling for the start of talks in parliament. 

Ruling Justice and Development (AKP) deputy Orhan Miro?lu also warned that the fight against terrorism was not possible with a lack of democracy. Speaking at a press conference in parliament on Dec. 21, Miro?lu said they favored a "national consensus in parliament."

"We want a discussion in parliament and [support a] stance of all our political parties against terror and violence with a national consensus, rather than with symbolic, daily moves," Miro?lu said.   

The Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP), meanwhile, called for efforts that would bring "normal life" back to the areas affected by the sieges.

"The solution is never evacuation and depopulation of these cities. The solution is creating the environment for a return to normal life," Ayhan Bilgen, a spokesperson for the HDP, said at a press conference on Dec. 21.

"The spokespersons for the government are saying we have...