ERBIL, Kurdistan Region – A German court has given a suspended sentence to a 60-year-old PKK member and lifted his arrest record after taking into account his background and Turkey’s record of aiding terrorist groups in Syria. The German Die Welt newspaper reported that on Friday the ruling also saw the man’s arrest warrant lifted. Approximately seventy PKK supporters applauded the decision. The man’s arrest warrant was also lifted. His name was withheld under Germany’s privacy law, he was initially tried for being a member of a foreign terrorist organization. He reportedly headed PKK activities in the northern German city of Bremen – where he collected money and spread propaganda on behalf of the group. However, as part of the case the judge considered the fact the man admitted to being a PKK member and also considered the fact he was of Yezidi origin, meaning he was subject to persecution. Also in favour of the man’s case is the fact that the PKK has been fighting ISIS for the last two years, notably in Shingal in Iraq. The Syrian Kurdish People’s Protection Units (YPG), which Turkey charges is linked closely to the PKK, has also been heading the fight against ISIS on the ground in Syria. The judge contrasted this with Turkey’s suspected support of al-Qaeda between 2011 and 2014 when it provided health treatment to its wounded fighters and allowed them to cross the Turkish border while fighting the Syrian Kurds and the Syrian regime. This ruling is likely to further damage German-Turkish ties, since it comes as Ankara is repeatedly denouncing Berlin for not doing more to crackdown on PKK supporters on its soil. On Saturday Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim essentially told European leaders to “decide with whom to cooperate,” Ankara or the “terror groups.” “You will always say that ‘Turkey is key for Europe’s security’ but then will ally with terror organizations that tries to dissolve Turkey,” Yildirim charged, according to Hurriyet news. “We will never accept this,” he warned.
