On Dec. 24, 2022, shortly before New Year's, three people lost their lives, and more were wounded when a 69-year-old gunman opened fire at a cultural center in the French capital Paris. The attack led to violent clashes between supporters of the PKK terrorist group and local police during which the city turned into a battlefield of unprecedented and unheard-of dimensions, respectively.
What does that have to do with the PKK terrorist group? As the lone killer had targeted a neighborhood and cultural center popular among residents with Kurdish backgrounds, they argued that it was an attack against Kurds and as the PKK interprets itself as the representative of Kurdish people and a “promoter of human rights” of sorts to disguise its real identity as a terrorist group. In classic PKK fashion, the terrorist group immediately resorted to its bizarre claims that Türkiye is responsible for the killings.
First, there is an ongoing debate in France over whether the murderer was targeting a specific group with a Kurdish background or foreigners in general. The first is a credible assumption, as he chose a hairdresser, a restaurant, and a cultural center popular with Paris's Franco-Kurdish community. Nevertheless, he had been released from prison shortly before he committed a crime targeting refugees who were previously housed in tents. Was there a far-right network connection? Authorities are skeptical, saying he is acting alone for now.
A day after the shooting, the PKK terrorist group took matters into its own hands and brought chaos and violence to the French capital. Many police officers were injured during the riots. On the one hand, there was understandable anger and shock felt in the expatriate community, which mirrored sympathy for the victim's families. On the other hand, supporters of the PKK misused the attack as a reason for doing what the PKK does best: terrorizing innocent people and attacking other people’s property. Above all else, the PKK is responsible for the deaths of over 40,000 men, women and children in Türkiye since the mid-1980s. But over time, the terrorist group branched off and "settled" in other countries, notably Belgium, Germany and France – as we witnessed some days ago. This branching is a direct result of Türkiye’s ever-more successful fight against the terrorist group and the fact that many of its remaining members seek refuge elsewhere. It is sad enough that "prominent" terrorists have found a safe haven in other countries!
Europe had its share of terrorist activities in the past: Germany's Red Army Faction or Britain's Irish Republican Army (IRA) are cases in point. More recently, xenophobia and racism have taken over polar positions rather than the bizarre "political ideology" on the list of major motivations behind these attacks. However, a terrorist group continues to uphold its ideological stance: the PKK, which is classified as a terrorist group in both the European Union and the United States. They do not support the welfare of people of Kurdish origin – instead what they do is try to establish an autocratic, dictatorial independent state if "state" is the right word, because a state is normally based on universal democratic norms, values of democracy and a democratic form of government. Needless to say, hardly anyone with Kurdish roots anywhere in the world would want to live under such rule.
Hence, the only way to ever find new sympathizers is to lure them into the mountains, promising a new world where freedom reigns supreme and all oppressed become heroes. Yet, those citizens the PKK claims are oppressed do not feel oppressed in the slightest way as they wholeheartedly detest the PKK and their agents. Human trafficking, drug trafficking, money laundering, or as the PKK would call it, "fundraising," have become the last resort of a terror clan on the way out. This brings us back to the comment made earlier that the PKK’s branching process unfortunately continues, and it is only possible because many European governments, authorities, and intelligence turned a blind eye toward PKK sympathizers settling on their very own soil.
As reported on Euronews on Dec. 24, 2022, during the riots, some PKK sympathizers shouted slogans that "Türkiye is the assassin." In other words, in their bizarre mindset, some PKK supporters claimed that Türkiye is responsible for the attack in Paris. According to them, that lone wolf was "a state-sponsored terrorist." Psychologists, does anyone have any clue?
Yet, perhaps there is light at the end of the tunnel best-called negligence, worst labeled silent tolerance. Last year, German intelligence for the first time openly and clearly referred to the PKK active on German soil as a threat and as the most dangerous of all terrorist and anti-democratic organizations active in that country. And then the numbers were confirmed: According to authorities 14,500 known PKK sympathizers reside in Germany alone. Shocking, or is it not?
This is written and if one major actor in the EU finally understands the grave risks the PKK poses not anymore only to Türkiye but Europe as whole, other capitals might want to follow suit and step up observations, and ultimately, prosecution of criminal activities linked to the terror clan.
One obstacle in all of this is the confusing attitude amongst many members of mainstream media both in Germany and Europe as such. As modern Türkiye is often belittled and not portrayed as what it is – a nation-state with a rock-solid democratic and economic foundation, which has embarked on a sensational path of reform and modernization – PKK sympathizers may find verbal ammunition for their ongoing fight against exactly that modern democracy. If ordinary German citizens are led to believe that whatever Türkiye does is wrong anyways, citizens with a Kurdish German background might start thinking that "Well, what if those editorials are true?" It is an extremely dangerous approach to reporting about Türkiye, in fact, mostly Fake News 2.0.
Let us hope that 2023 allows German and European authorities and society as such to realize that baby killers cannot be classified as "freedom fighters."
This brings us back to Paris, expressing once again heartfelt condolences to the families of the victims who lost their precious lives on Dec. 23, 2022; may the injured recover fully and speedily. The same holds forth with regard to paying respect to the many dozens of police injured during the clashes that started the day after.
Expatriates and new arrivals from all over the world are welcome in France despite far-right circles trying to make the electorate believe differently. This is easily understood when we visit almost all neighborhoods of the capital Paris where often up to half of all residents have international backgrounds and roots. It is not uncommon that the house manager is from Portugal, one of your neighbors from Senegal, the shopkeeper next door from Algeria and your children’s teacher is from Türkiye. Paris is a microcosm of sorts.
At times, harmony is considered fragile, but it is not a specific French phenomenon. At this very point, the PKK terrorist group is trying to create opposition to one nation and one nationality, whether it is from their shelters in the mountains or from abroad openly very close to home. The PKK incites hatred in society. Far-right populists and racists often do the same. Inciting hatred in society is a criminal offense. Whether a lone wolf or a hardened terrorist group, French and all other democratic societies must roll up their sleeves, so to speak, to promote the benefits of living in a multicultural society much more pro-actively. This will eventually quench the wind of the extremist.
*Political analyst, journalist based in London
