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Turkey fumes at Austria for failing to arrest
wanted Kurd rebel
20.7.2007 |
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Turkey assails Austria for allowing Kurdish rebel to
be flown to Iraqi Kurdistan
July
20, 2007
ANKARA, -- Accusing European allies of
undermining the fight against terrorism, the Turkish
foreign minister criticized Austria on Thursday for
allowing Kurdish rebel sought by Turkey to fly to
Kurdistan region (northern Iraq) instead of
returning him to Turkey.
Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul said Wednesday that
his office had summoned the Austrian ambassador and
handed her a note that formally protested Austria's
decision to send the Kurd, Ali Riza Altun, to
Kurdistan (northern Iraq). Turkey contends that
Altun is in charge of finances in Europe for the
Kurdistan Workers Party. The party is listed as a
terrorist organization by the European Union and the
United States.
Gul said Altun was on an Interpol wanted list and
had been held by the Austrian authorities for
traveling on a false identity card.
"But still, he was placed on a plane and sent to
Iraq," Gul said at a news conference. "This is a
grave error and unacceptable. We strongly protested
this and asked for an explanation. This corrodes the
foundations of international cooperation against
terrorism."
The Austrian Justice Ministry confirmed that Altun
was taken into custody at Vienna's international
airport on July 4 on suspicion of attempting to
leave the country with a fake travel document.
The Justice Ministry said in a statement that Altun
was released on July 13, after an investigation
showed that the French authorities had granted him a
type of asylum based on a belief that he would be
persecuted if extradited to Turkey.
Altun, who had lived in France since 2000, left
Austria for Iraq shortly after he was released, the
statement said.
Turkey has long complained of a lack of
international cooperation in combating the Kurdistan
Workers Party.
It is pressing Iraq and the United States to prevent
rebel attacks on Turkey from bases in northern Iraq.
The guerrillas have recently stepped up attacks in
Turkey.
The military has massed troops on its border with
Iraq, and Turkish leaders are considering a military
operation in northern Iraq to root out the rebel
bases.
On Thursday, Turkish officials asked Iraq's
ambassador to have Iraq arrest Altun extradite him
to Turkey, a Foreign Ministry official said. He
spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not
authorized to speak to journalists.
Gul said that the United States had opened an
investigation following Turkish complaints that U.S.
weapons were ending up in the hands of the rebels.
In 1984, the PKK took up arms for self-rule in the
country's mainly Kurdish southeast of Turkey.
AP
** The use of the term "Kurdistan" is vigorously
rejected due to its alleged political implications
by the Republic of Turkey, which does not recognize
the existence of a "Turkish Kurdistan" Southeast
Turkey.
Kurds are not recognized as an official minority in
Turkey and are denied rights granted to other
minority groups. Under EU pressure, Turkey recently
granted Kurds limited rights for broadcasts and
education in the Kurdish language, but critics say
the measures do not go far enough.
Others estimate over 40 million Kurds live in
Big Kurdistan (Iraq, Turkey, Syria, Iran, Armenia),
which covers an area as big as France, about half of
all Kurds which estimate to 20 million live in
Turkey.
Turkey is home to over 25 million ethnic Kurds, some
of whom openly sympathise with the Kurdish PKK for a
Kurdish homeland in the country's mainly Kurdish
southeast of Turkey.
Before August 2002, the Turkish government placed
severe restrictions on the use of Kurdish language,
prohibiting the language in education and broadcast
media.
The Kurdish alphabet is still not recognized
in Turkey, and use of the Kurdish letters X, W, Q
which do not exist in the Turkish
alphabet has led to judicial persecution in 2000 and
2003
The Kurdish flag flown officially in Iraqi Kurdistan
but unofficially flown by Kurds in Armenia. The flag
is banned in Iran, Syria, and Turkey where flying it
is a criminal offence"
Southeastern Turkey:
North Kurdistan ( Kurdistan-Turkey)
wikipedia
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