German Interior Minister Thomas de Maiziere said on Saturday that they will harshly interfere to the protesters, including PKK supporters, who act violently in protests against the upcoming G20 summit.
Speaking to the Bild am Sonntag Daily of Germany, Maiziere stated that they expect more than 8,000 "extremists" to join the protests domestically and from abroad. He also expressed his concerns especially over the extreme leftist groups that "desire to harm the summit and are capable of committing serious crimes."
Maiziere further indicated that they would permit protests against the politics of the President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. "Yet," he added, "in case of the protesters who are supporting the PKK terrorist organization, the authorities would interfere."
He added that the government would not allow PKK symbols to be displayed during the demonstrations.
PKK sympathizers have long used Germany as a safe haven for activities, including recruitment and collecting financial support, as well as openly holding rallies in German cities, despite being officially recognized as terrorist group in Europe.
The Group of 20 summit will take place on July 7-8. The G20, comprised of 19 countries plus the European Union, is expected to discuss several global political and economic issues during the summit.
Protesters, with a large amount of participation, have been preparing to protest the summit. The German Federal Constitutional Court had concluded that the protest camp that is planned to be built in Hamburg by the anti-G20 supporters would not be banned completely. However, just one week before the decision, the camp has been banned by the authorities.
Hamburg has increased its security measures in preparation for the summit. The measures include tighter border controls, which will be carried out at various locations with temporal flexibility.
According to German media sources, about 15,000 police officers from across Germany will be recruited for the event in Hamburg. Meanwhile, the first anti-G20 summit protest took place in Hamburg yesterday.
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