And the PKK turns its attention to killing civilians
In addition to posing a threat to the reconciliation process, the increasing terrorist attacks organized by the PKK now target civilian lives
For the past decade PKK militants focused their terrorist actions on the Turkish military. In recent times however, PKK killers have been targeting police officers as well as soldiers. Unfortunately, traffic police have also been targeted in ambush attacks.
Now, PKK terrorist killings have taken a new twist as the terrorists have started claiming civilian lives. They have been kidnapping workers, engineers and civil servants, but releasing them unharmed. However, in recent days PKK militants set up a road block and fired on a car killing a woman. On Monday the terrorists assassinated the former Justice and Development Party (AK Party) Diyarbakır youth branch president, Yunus Koca, as he was going to work.
The PKK has targeted civilians twice before in Ankara. On May 22, 2007, a PKK terrorist attack in the heart of the capital during rush hour claimed nine lives and wounded 121 people. On Sept. 22, 2011, another PKK bomb in Ankara killed three people and wounded 34 others. Various PKK factions claimed responsibility for these atrocities. Since then the PKK returned to its terrorist attacks against security forces.
Now the picture is different. They are killing on the streets and firing at civilians. This is a dangerous development where the PKK is giving out signals that it is as vicious and cruel as Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS) terrorists and that they are a brutal, violent force no regard for human life. It also means the PKK can no longer claim it will abandon terrorism and try to become a docile political entity.
But that is only normal. Whoever felt that the PKK could be tamed and would turn into an entity that would ease into normal social life were only kidding themselves. The people of eastern and southeastern Turkey have to see the ugly face of the PKK and treat it accordingly. That also goes for the Kurdish political movement represented in Parliament with 80 deputies from the Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP). They should stop relying on the PKK and its terrorist groups and rely instead on the 13 percent of voters in this country that brought them to Parliament.
The HDP will see that the more it distances itself from the PKK killers the more people in Turkey will rally around them.
Those in European countries who support the PKK should also see the real face of the terrorist organization and try to stifle the channels that fund the violent killers. The Germans should be more than aware of the true face of the PKK, and yet we still see that German politicians are not properly differentiating between terrorists and those who are trying to make an impact with poor political means.
What should be done is to pacify the PKK, take away its arms and send its leaders into exile as far away from Turkey as possible. These people should never be allowed to represent our citizens of Kurdish origin. Those who have no regard for human life should not be a part of this society, whatever their motives.
Now, PKK terrorist killings have taken a new twist as the terrorists have started claiming civilian lives. They have been kidnapping workers, engineers and civil servants, but releasing them unharmed. However, in recent days PKK militants set up a road block and fired on a car killing a woman. On Monday the terrorists assassinated the former Justice and Development Party (AK Party) Diyarbakır youth branch president, Yunus Koca, as he was going to work.
The PKK has targeted civilians twice before in Ankara. On May 22, 2007, a PKK terrorist attack in the heart of the capital during rush hour claimed nine lives and wounded 121 people. On Sept. 22, 2011, another PKK bomb in Ankara killed three people and wounded 34 others. Various PKK factions claimed responsibility for these atrocities. Since then the PKK returned to its terrorist attacks against security forces.
Now the picture is different. They are killing on the streets and firing at civilians. This is a dangerous development where the PKK is giving out signals that it is as vicious and cruel as Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS) terrorists and that they are a brutal, violent force no regard for human life. It also means the PKK can no longer claim it will abandon terrorism and try to become a docile political entity.
But that is only normal. Whoever felt that the PKK could be tamed and would turn into an entity that would ease into normal social life were only kidding themselves. The people of eastern and southeastern Turkey have to see the ugly face of the PKK and treat it accordingly. That also goes for the Kurdish political movement represented in Parliament with 80 deputies from the Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP). They should stop relying on the PKK and its terrorist groups and rely instead on the 13 percent of voters in this country that brought them to Parliament.
The HDP will see that the more it distances itself from the PKK killers the more people in Turkey will rally around them.
Those in European countries who support the PKK should also see the real face of the terrorist organization and try to stifle the channels that fund the violent killers. The Germans should be more than aware of the true face of the PKK, and yet we still see that German politicians are not properly differentiating between terrorists and those who are trying to make an impact with poor political means.
What should be done is to pacify the PKK, take away its arms and send its leaders into exile as far away from Turkey as possible. These people should never be allowed to represent our citizens of Kurdish origin. Those who have no regard for human life should not be a part of this society, whatever their motives.