Turkish opposition leader killed in helicopter crash

29/03/2009

ANKARA, Turkey -- Six people, including opposition Great Union Party (BBP) leader Muhsin Yazicioglu, died in a helicopter crash in the southern province of Kahramanmaras, Interior Minister Besir Atalay said on Friday (March 27th). Yazicioglu's helicopter crashed Wednesday in bad weather. Searchers took two days to find the wreckage and found all six people aboard dead, even though one had made a cell phone call shortly after the crash. A number of political parties suspended their campaign rallies in solidarity.

In other news, around 48.6 million Turkish voters are set to cast their vote in the country's local elections on Sunday (March 29th). Representatives of a total of 19 political parties are running for mayoral and municipal council posts in the country's 81 provinces. According to polls, the ruling Justice and Development Party is largely expected to confirm its leading position over the main opposition Republican People's Party. The pro-Kurdish Democratic Society Party is expected to emerge as the main opposition party in the predominantly Kurdish southeastern provinces. (Radikal, Milliyet - 29/03/09; Sabah, Yeni Safak, Radikal, Vatan, Cumhuriyet, Xinhua, Hurriyet, Anadolu news agency, AFP, AP - 28/03/09; Hurriyet, AFP, Zaman, AP, CNN - 27/03/09)