16 German activists held in Turkey amid pro-Kurdish protests

A group of 16 German activists and journalists has been detained in Turkey after trying to highlight the humanitarian plight of Kurds in northern and eastern Syria, a German opposition party has said, reported dpa.

The Left party said those affected were part of a civil society delegation which travelled to the Kurdish regions in south-eastern Turkey to observe protests against the escalating violence in Syria, draw attention to the humanitarian situation in the Kurdish-controlled areas in the country, and document possible human rights violations.

Among those detained are activists, journalists and a member of a regional chapter of the party, it said.

The German Foreign Office said it was aware of reports of possible detentions. The German embassy in Ankara and the consulate in Istanbul are working to clarify the situation "as quickly as possible," the ministry told dpa.

The Turkish Interior Ministry initially did not respond to a request for comment.

The Left leader Jan van Aken and Cansu Özdemir, the party's foreign policy spokesman in parliament, called for those affected to be released immediately.

The party's accusations come amid heightened tensions along Turkey's pre-dominantly Kurdish border region with Syria.

Pro-Kurdish demonstrators in Turkey have protested against recent clashes between the interim government in Damascus and the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) in northern Syria, where the Kurdish-led militia has long controlled large swathes of territory.