The former mayor of the Nusaybin district of Mardin, Cengiz Kök, has been sentenced to prison in Turkey. The 42-year-old politician is accused of "membership in a terrorist organization.

Kök, together with Sara Kaya, was elected co-mayor of Nusaybin in the local elections in March 2014. In the course of the Turkish government's coup against the Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) and its sister party, the Party of Democratic Regions (DBP), both were removed from office in September 2016. They were imprisoned the following January on charges of attempting to destroy the unity and integrity of the state. While Kök was released from prison after eleven months on remand, Kaya was sentenced to sixteen years in prison this June.

Kök was not present at today's trial at the 4th Heavy Penal Court of Mardin. He was represented by lawyer Mazlum Dinç, who is also one of the defenders of Abdullah Öcalan. Dinç rejected the accusations against his client and demanded acquittal. The court sentenced the politician to six years and three months in prison.