A suspected member of the PKK terrorist group wanted by Germany was arrested in Spain.
He is said to be a so-called ringleader of the PKK and has been behind bars since last week. He was arrested on the island of Mallorca, according to a brief police press release issued on Monday.
The man, who was born in Türkiye, is accused of collecting money for terrorist attacks. He is also said to have coordinated operations and taken on organizational, financial and personnel tasks.
The police did not provide any further details. A court must decide whether the man will be transferred to Germany.
The PKK is classified as an "ethno-nationalist" and "separatist" terrorist organization by the EU's law enforcement agency EUROPOL and has been banned in Germany since 1993. Its leader Abdullah Öcalan has been imprisoned in Türkiye for 25 years.
However, it remains active in the country with nearly 15,000 followers among the Kurdish immigrant population, according to German intelligence agency BfV.
BfV chief Thomas Haldenwang last month revealed the number of people supporting the PKK increased from 14,500 to 15,000 people in Germany this year.
Rather than committing serious crimes, the group has focused more on propaganda, recruitment and fundraising activities, raking in millions annually.
The terrorist group raised at least 16 million euros ($17 million) in Germany last year in various fundraising campaigns, according to German estimates.
BfV’s annual report said in June that PKK members committed 286 crimes last year, including violent attacks, resulting in both personal injury and property damage. It also recruited more than 300 foreign fighters from Germany since 2013 who were given military training in Syria and Iraq.
BfV analysts said the PKK has a strict hierarchical structure, and its units in Europe follow the instructions sent by the terrorist group's leadership, without any room for independent decision-making.
"In Europe, the PKK is trying to present a largely non-violent image, whereas in Türkiye it continues to carry out terrorist attacks," the analysts said.
The group's sympathizers attacked the Turkish Consulate building in Hannover in March after holding pro-PKK demonstrations in the city without any intervention from the police. No one was killed or injured, but there was damage to the building, which German security is obligated to protect as an official representation of Türkiye in the country.
The German government considers numerous acts as political, including intent to hinder democracy and crimes aimed at members of certain ethnic, religious or other groups.
Ankara has long called on its NATO ally Germany to take more serious and effective measures against the PKK to prevent future terrorist attacks.
The PKK has been infiltrating European countries by exploiting the legal gaps and vague policies to recruit militants and finance its activities.
In Türkiye, authorities detained five suspects linked to the PKK in southern Mersin and southeastern Diyarbakır provinces on Monday.
