Three trucks belonging to a private Turkish company were set ablaze in an arson attack in Germany that was suspected to have been carried out by the PKK terrorist organization's followers active in the country.
The incident took place in Berlin's Neukölln neighborhood Tuesday night. A driver noticed a burning truck belonging to the Turkish furniture chain İstikbal and alerted the police. Before long, the flames reportedly spread to two other trucks owned by the company. The incident was resolved by the firefighters without any injuries. However, two of the trucks were severely burned, resulting in high property damage. Berlin police launched an investigation into the incident searching for possible political motivations. The past several weeks have witnessed several attacks on Turkish institutions and mosques, many of which were found to have been conducted by the PKK's sympathizers in Germany and across other European cities.
Attacks on buildings affiliated with Turkey and Turkish organizations in Europe intensified after Turkey launched Operation Olive Branch on Jan. 20 to remove Syrian affiliates of the PKK, the Democratic Union Party (PYD) and its People's Protection Units (YPG) militia, from Afrin in northwestern Syria.
According to the Funke Media group's report released on March 20 based on information from Germany's Interior Ministry, 37 attacks targeted Turkish establishments in Germany in 2018, while last year the number of attacks was 13. An Interior Ministry spokesperson told the Funke Media group that these numbers might rise soon.
Germany has a 3 million-strong Turkish community, many of whom are second and third generation German-born citizens of Turkish descent whose grandparents moved to the country in the 1960s. In the face of growing threats directed at the Turkish community in Germany, Ankara has been calling on Germany to not tolerate the PKK, stressing that security officials need to bring the perpetrators to justice and take necessary measures to prevent new attacks. Turkey expects German authorities stamp out the PKK's campaigns in the country. The PKK has been banned in Germany since 1993 but remains active, with nearly 14,000 followers among the country's Kurdish immigrant population. Turkey has long criticized Germany for not taking serious measures against the PKK, which uses the country as a platform for their fundraising, recruitment and propaganda activities.