The Justice Ministry has officially submitted the file containing the extradition request for former co-chair of the terrorist PKK's Syrian offshoot Democratic Union Party (PYD) Salih Muslum from the Czech Republic, Deputy Prime Minister Bekir Bozdağ said Monday.
Speaking on a live interview on NTV, Bozdağ said that Muslum will appear in court in the Czech Republic on Monday, which will decide whether he will be arrested or not.
"Turkey expects Salih Muslum -- who is a leader of a terrorist group and is still actively plotting terrorist attacks against Turkey -- to be extradited to our country in line with legal requirements between our countries," Bozdağ said.
The Interpol unit in the Czech Republic notified Turkish authorities that Muslum was detained in Prague on Feb. 24 upon Turkey's request and detention order.
Turkey had issued arrest warrants and subsequent red notices for Muslum and 47 other PKK high-rank figures in Nov. 2016, following the end of a three year long the reconciliation period, while a new red notice was issued for Muslum on Feb. 13 as he was included on the updated most wanted terrorists list with a four million Turkish lira ($1.05 million) bounty on his head.
Muslum is being sought for a string of PKK attacks inside Turkey after July 2015, in addition to dozens of cross-border attacks by PYD's armed wing People's Protection Forces (YPG) from northern Syria.
In addition to attacks targeting Turkey, the PYD and the YPG have been accused of attacks targeting civilians and political opponents in areas they control in northern Syria, as well as changing demographic structure by forcing local Arab and Turkmen groups out of their land and villages.
Meanwhile, Ankara chief prosecutor's office also issued an arrest warrant for Muslum on Monday over a bombing in capital Ankara's main tax office earlier this month.
