MP nurses his nose after funeral attack

TURKISH prime minister Tayyip Erdogan yesterday visited his energy minister Taner Yildiz who was assaulted on Monday during the funeral ceremony in Kayseri for a soldier who was killed last week.

The soldier died following an attack on a civilian minibus. There were reports the attack was by the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party, and the angry scenes were against the government for their move to "solve" the Kurdish issue.

Local media reported gymnastics teacher Sahin Simsek punched Mr Yildiz in the face, shouting: "This is the fist of the Turkish people. Here is (a Kurdish] initiative." Simsek was detained along with three others.

Last week, in the Black Sea province of Samsun, the former head of the disbanded pro- Kurdish Democratic Society Party, or DTP, was also attacked.