A total of 43 people were taken into custody during raids carried out by the Turkish police and gendarmerie (military police) in dozens of villages in Hizan and Tatvan districts of Bitlis, and in the Gevaş and İpekyolu districts of Van on 28 November.

While 12 of the detainees were released after being questioned by the police and gendarmerie, 22 were remanded in custody for alleged links to a "terrorist organisation", meaning the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK). Procedures continue for at least 16 other detainees at the courthouse.

The population in the province of Bitlis is repeatedly subjected to state terror. Large-scale military operations took place in the rural areas of the city during the summer months. Curfews were imposed and villagers are no longer able to graze their cattle. Since the start of September, large areas of forest have been cut down to restrict the movement of the guerrillas and to build large military fortresses. These measures are placing a considerable burden on the Kurdish rural population and increasing the pressure on residents to leave the affected areas.