A member of the PKK terrorist group eliminated in a Turkish Armed Forces (TSK) operation in northern Iraq last week was revealed to be a German citizen, the Turkish Defense Ministry announced Tuesday.
Thomas J., codenamed “Azed Sergeş,” was among a group of terrorists killed in a drone strike in the Iraqi region of Hakurk on June 15 as part of Türkiye’s cross-border operations targeting the likes of PKK and Daesh, the ministry informed.
Thomas J. was born in Mainburg, a city in the state of Bavaria, and joined PKK ranks in Munich.
Security experts described the situation as “the biggest proof that PKK recruitments at home have dwindled to almost extinction.”
The terror group is now dedicated to deceiving youths abroad, experts said and stressed the importance of collaboration in the war on terror.
Following the NATO defense ministers meeting in Brussels last week, Defense Minister Yaşar Güler also emphasized the point, telling reporters: “Türkiye is determined to fight against all terrorist organizations, including PKK/YPG/PYD, FETÖ, Daesh and al-Qaida. We expect full support from all our allies in this regard.”
The PKK, classified as an “ethno-nationalist” terrorist organization by the EU’s law enforcement agency Europol, has been banned in Germany since 1993. However, it remains the largest foreign extremist group in the country, and its followers, some 14,500 people, can carry out violent attacks upon instructions from group leaders abroad, Germany’s domestic intelligence agency, BfV, warned in its annual report last year.
“The PKK is organizing various fundraising campaigns in Germany and then using this money to finance terror attacks in Türkiye,” Thomas Haldenwang, head of the BfV, admitted.
The terrorist group raised an estimated 16.7 million euros ($17.8 million) in Germany in 2021 and collected more than 30 million euros in various "fundraising campaigns" across Europe, according to the report.
Furthermore, it showed that since 2013, at least 295 foreign fighters from Germany have traveled to northern Syria and Iraq, where they received military training from PKK terrorists and took part in armed attacks in the region.
At least 30 of these foreign fighters died in battle zones, while nearly 150 of them returned to Germany in recent years, the report said, without giving any further details.
According to the BfV, followers of the PKK group committed more than 300 crimes in Germany in 2021, including violent attacks resulting in personal injury and property damage. At least nine people were injured in these attacks.
“In Europe, the PKK has been trying to portray itself as a non-violent group,” the report said, referring to the terrorist organization’s propaganda activities to influence European public opinion.
But in many demonstrations in recent years, PKK followers used violence and clashed with the police or political opponents, according to the report.
Several reports from Turkish and international law enforcement agencies have also shown the group can finance its bloody terrorist campaign through drug trafficking in the European Union, raking in over $1.5 billion annually. It relies on its supporters and pro-PKK political groups across Europe.
Although Türkiye has repeatedly called on its NATO ally Germany to take stronger action against the PKK, the terrorist group’s activities have been largely tolerated by authorities, and Berlin has been reluctant to do more to combat the group.
Türkiye has frequently voiced concerns over European countries’ tolerance toward the PKK, however, the terrorist organization still maintains a strong presence in the region, being able to hold rallies and engage in recruitment activities.
As recent as last month, sympathizers of the group attacked a mosque in the northwestern city of Bad Bentheim, which the German police said would handle as not a case of “damage to the property via graffiti.”
