PKK behind 1,028 criminal acts in 2017 in Germany: Ministry

BERLIN – Anadolu Agency

The outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) was responsible for over a thousand criminal acts in Germany last year, the Interior Ministry announced on May 8.

Speaking at a press conference in Berlin, Federal Interior Minister Horst Seehofer said police have recorded a total of 1,617 politically-motivated crimes committed by foreign, mostly far-left groups.

PKK followers were responsible for 1,028 criminal acts, according to the annual crime statistics announced by the minister, of which 151 were violent offences.

Seehofer noted that the overall number of politically-motivated crimes decreased in 2017 compared with the previous year, but he underlined that could not be a reason to loosen security measures.

“Our constitutional state must continue to fight against all forms of extremism and terrorism by every possible means,” he said.

The PKK has been banned in Germany since 1993, but it remains active, with nearly 14,000 followers among the Kurdish immigrant population in the country.

Turkey has long criticized German authorities for not taking serious measures against the group.