The nine police officers, including a police chief, were taken off the KCK investigation by the İstanbul Governor's Office late on Wednesday. The dismissals follow a similar move by the governor's office to reassign İstanbul Police Department Counterterrorism Unit head Yurt Atayün and İstanbul Police Department Intelligence Unit head Erol Demirhan. Atayün and Demirhan were later appointed to Ankara and replaced by Ömer Köse and Serdar Güldalı, respectively.
The recent reshuffle in the İstanbul Police Department comes on the heels of an attempt by an İstanbul prosecutor to interrogate National Intelligence Organization (MİT) Undersecretary Hakan Fidan, his predecessor, Emre Taner, and MİT Deputy Undersecretary Afet Güneş as part of the same investigation. The prosecutor was also removed from the case by İstanbul Deputy Chief Public Prosecutor Fikret Seçen on the grounds that he had overstepped his authority.
The KCK investigation started in December 2009, and a large number of suspected KCK members, including several mayors from the pro-Kurdish Peace and Democracy Party (BDP), have been detained. The suspects are accused of various crimes, including membership in a terrorist organization, aiding and abetting a terrorist organization and attempting to destroy the country's unity and territorial integrity.
Some MİT officials are also suspected of having collaborated with the KCK.
