ANF, Paris — At least 23 Kurds have been taken into custody in France and Spain on Tuesday. The operations which target the political activities of Kurds are being coordinated by the French state which have arrested hundreds of Kurds for political reasons in the scope of the security cooperation agreement it made with Turkey in October 2011.
According to updated reports, 17 Kurds were into custody in the French cities of Bordeaux and Toulouse yesterday. The operation, ordered by anti-terror prosecutors and carried out by police forces, was reportedly conducted in the scope of an investigation launched against Kurds in March 2012 for alleged “attempt to fundraising to provide financial support to PKK (Kurdistan Workers Party)”.
The operation was not limited to France, but invoved Spain as well where six other Kurds were taken into custody the scope of the same investigation led by French prosecutors. The Spanish Foreign Minister has stated that the operation against Kurds, four in Madrid, one in Barcelona and one in Murcia, was carried out jointly with the French police and targeted funds raised by Kurds in the country.
On the other hand, a jailed Kurdish politician living in Germany was prosecuted by German authorities on the same day.
While political operations were carried out in Europe, Turkish military has launched operations in a number of areas in the Kurdish region.
An operation was launched by Turkish soldiers in the rural areas of villages in Mardin’s Mazıdağı district on Tuesday evening. According to the reports by local sources, a number of armored vehicles and soldiers have been sent to the operation area since yesterday. The operation is also supported by special operation teams and village guards in the region.
One other operation has been launched in Lice-Hani-Genç triangle on Diyarbakır-Bingöl border early Wednesday. An explosion has been heard in the area of the operation, which is carried out in the rural areas near the villages of Güldiken (Peçar) in Lice, Sağgöze (Rîz) in Genç and the province of Muş.
Turkish military has launched a separate operation in the region of Besta in Şırnak late Tuesday. The operation area was intensely bombed by warplanes late at night. Helicopters and a number of military units have been sent to the area where the operation is reported to be continuing.
Firat News Agency
(en.firatajans.com)