A Turkish news agency says about 3,000 Kurds have rallied to demand that Syrian Kurds’ right to self-rule be recognized at an upcoming peace conference.

Syrian Kurds have increased their hold in the north of civil war-wracked Syria and have declared their own civil administration in some areas.

Dogan news agency said the rally was held in the city of Diyarbakir in Turkey’s mainly Kurdish southeast region Saturday. Participants called for a peace conference, which opens in the Swiss city of Montreux next week, to recognize a Kurdish autonomous region in Syria.

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A similar protest was held in Athens, Greece, on Saturday, where several hundred Kurds marched to the local offices of the European Parliament peacefully.

Kurds straddle parts of Turkey, Iraq, Iran and Syria.

Copyright 2014 The Associated Press.