Selami Altınok

The government is working on a regulation to have drivers' licenses temporarily suspended if they commit a red light violation twice, Interior Minister Süleyman Soylu stated on Sept. 12.

"In the event of a repetition of red light violations, along with the imposition of a monetary fine the temporary suspension of the driver's license will come into effect," Soylu said.

A major operation that was launched against the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) in the Lice district of the southeastern province of Diyarbakır has been continuing with the participation of some 7,000 soldiers, special forces police officers and village guards.

Turkey's opposition parties have condemned the deadly terror attack in Istanbul's Beşiktaş district that claimed the lives of at least 41 people late on Dec. 10. 

Governors from a total of 22 provinces in the eastern and southeastern regions of Turkey have been called to the capital Ankara for a security meeting. The call came from the Turkish Interior Ministry, Anadolu Agency reported on Sept. 18. 

A new head to Turkey's law enforcement was announced on Sept. 10 as Selami Altınok, who served as interior minister in 2015 during the government under former Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu, took over the role of Turkish police chief.

Altınok, who was serving as undersecretary at the interior ministry, was Istanbul's police chief between 2013 and 2015.      

Turkish police fired tear gas and water cannon to disperse protesters who had gathered in the Besiktas district of Istanbul despite a ban on holding May Day demonstrations in Taksim Square.

Istanbul Police Chief Selami Altinok said a total of 136 people had been detained by 2 pm local time on Friday, according to Turkey's Anadolu news agency, as cited by the BBC News.

Seven suspects have been detained in an investigation into the murder of a Serbian fan who was killed during incidents that erupted on the sidelines of last week's Euroleague Basketball game between Galatasaray and Red Star Belgrade in Istanbul, the city's top police official confirmed Nov. 28.