Belgian court: PKK not a terrorist organization

[Kailash Kumar]

Belgian court: PKK not a terrorist organization

Wladimir van Wilgenburg

3 hours ago

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – After nine years of proceedings, a court in Belgium on Friday acquitted multiple suspects accused of activities involving the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK).

Federal judicial authorities had requested that 36 individuals and companies be tried by a criminal court on charges of taking part in terrorist activity.

The Belgian Chamber of Indictment, however, blocked prosecution against all those standing trial in the case, ruling that the conflict involving the PKK in Turkey is an “internal armed conflict” and, as such, the group cannot be considered a terrorist organization.

The PKK has fought a decades-long insurgency against Ankara over Kurdish rights, a conflict that has taken more than thirty-thousand lives on both sides.

The court judged that the PKK, including their armed branch that is known as the People’s Defense Forces (HPG), is to be considered a non-state actor involved in an intensive non-international conflict between the PKK and the Turkish state.

Therefore, it ruled, the case is subject to international humanitarian law when involving acts taking place on Turkish soil.

“Insufficient objections were found to be able to conclude that the PKK/HPG was guilty of terrorist crimes outside of the aforementioned conflict area,” the ruling stated.

“Therefore, the PKK/HPG cannot be considered as a terrorist group, and the participation in the activities or having a leading position within this organization is not punishable under Belgian criminal law.”

The Turkish Foreign Ministry condemned the decision.

“It is possible to appeal against the decision in the Belgium Court of Appeals. Turkey will continue its legal fight determinedly,” ministry spokesperson Hami Aksoy said, in a statement.

Kurdish organizations welcomed the decision and called for the full removal of the PKK from European lists of terrorist groups.

“Today’s decision, and also the decision of the European Court [of] Justice of November 12 that the listing of the PKK on the EU terror list in 2014-2017 was unlawful, should ultimately lead to a reconsideration [of the listing] of the Kurdish freedom movements and its leaders,” read a statement released by the Cologne Legal Aid Fund for Kurds, also known as AZADÎ e.V.

This is not the first time the Brussels court has ruled that the PKK is not a terrorist organization. After judicial authorities opened a case against alleged members of the group for recruiting youth to fight in their armed struggle in 2015, a court returned a similar ruling.

According to VRT News, judicial authorities then took the case to the case to the Indictments Chamber, which, in 2017 as in Friday’s decision, ruled that the conflict was an internal one and therefore outside its jurisdiction.

http://www.kurdistan24.net/en/news/93c71fbc-6634-4d2c-8729-2d2ea1f0bdd8

 

[Dubious]

Interesting development!

 

[Nein]

Belgians= Terrorists

 

[TaiShang]

According to Brussel court, PKK is not a terrorist organization, but a party in the civil war in Turkey.

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Brussels court rules that the PKK is not a terrorist organisation

The Indictments Chamber in Brussels has exonerated from prosecution all those standing trial in a case sounding the activities of the Kurdish Workers’ Party PKK. The court ruled that the conflict between the Turkish state and the Kurds is “an internal armed conflict” and as such the PKK cannot be considered to be a terrorist organisation.

Sat 16 Sep 2017




The Federal Judicial Authorities had requested that 36 individuals and companies be tried by a criminal court on charges of taking part in terrorist activity.

In October 2015 the Judicial Authorities open a case at the Brussels pre-trial chamber as they believed that the PKK was recruiting young Kurds in Belgium and elsewhere in Western Europe to train them to fight in the armed struggle.

In addition to this the PKK was believed to be involved in the trade in forged identity documents and collecting funds often duress from individuals and businesses here in Belgium.

In November 2016 the Brussels pre-trial chamber had exonerated them from prosecution as the Turkish-Kurdish conflict should be viewed as an armed struggle and the terrorism laws.

The Judicial Authorities then took the case to the case to the Indictments Chamber. Now the Indictments Chamber has ruled that the PKK is not a terrorist organisation, but a party in the civil war in Turkey.

Consequently Belgian anti-terrorism law doesn’t apply.
The barrister acting for the Kurds Jan Fermon told journalists that the Brussels court is the first in Europe to rule that the conflict in Turkey is a civil war.

https://www.vrt.be/vrtnws/en/2017/0...tthepkkisnotaterroristorganisation-1-3066647/

***

Interesting development!

I wonder if this will have any impact on EU policy, which has been pressured to take the PKK off the terrorism list.

 

[Nein]

According to Brussel court, PKK is not a terrorist organization, but a party in the civil war in Turkey.

***

Brussels court rules that the PKK is not a terrorist organisation

The Indictments Chamber in Brussels has exonerated from prosecution all those standing trial in a case sounding the activities of the Kurdish Workers’ Party PKK. The court ruled that the conflict between the Turkish state and the Kurds is “an internal armed conflict” and as such the PKK cannot be considered to be a terrorist organisation.

Sat 16 Sep 2017




The Federal Judicial Authorities had requested that 36 individuals and companies be tried by a criminal court on charges of taking part in terrorist activity.

In October 2015 the Judicial Authorities open a case at the Brussels pre-trial chamber as they believed that the PKK was recruiting young Kurds in Belgium and elsewhere in Western Europe to train them to fight in the armed struggle.

In addition to this the PKK was believed to be involved in the trade in forged identity documents and collecting funds often duress from individuals and businesses here in Belgium.

In November 2016 the Brussels pre-trial chamber had exonerated them from prosecution as the Turkish-Kurdish conflict should be viewed as an armed struggle and the terrorism laws.

The Judicial Authorities then took the case to the case to the Indictments Chamber. Now the Indictments Chamber has ruled that the PKK is not a terrorist organisation, but a party in the civil war in Turkey.

Consequently Belgian anti-terrorism law doesn’t apply.
The barrister acting for the Kurds Jan Fermon told journalists that the Brussels court is the first in Europe to rule that the conflict in Turkey is a civil war.

https://www.vrt.be/vrtnws/en/2017/0...tthepkkisnotaterroristorganisation-1-3066647/

***



I wonder if this will have any impact on EU policy, which has been pressured to take the PKK off the terrorism list.

But a party how ridiculous that means Isis or Al Qaeda are not groups but parties to a civil war afterall their origins all trace back to the Muslim brotherhood not to mention the Afghanistan Civil war which Al Qaeda fought in especially one their founders aka Ayman Al Zawahiri was part of the Muslim Brotherhood.