Six people have been charged with being members of a proscribed terrorist group, the Met Police say.
Turkan Ozcan, 59, Mazlum Sayak, 27, Berfin Kerban, 31, Ali Boyraz, 62, Ercan Akbal, 56, and Agit Karatas, 23, have been accused of being members of the banned militant group, the Kurdistan Worker’s Party (PKK).
Supporters of the Kurdish community clashed with police following the arrests across London on Wednesday 27 November.
Over at least eight addresses, including the Kurdish Community Centre in Haringey, home to the advocacy group the Kurdish People’s Assembly in the UK, were raided by the police in the early hours of the anniversary of the Kurdish Freedom Movement, as part of the investigation.
The Kurdish People’s Assembly is now calling for “a public apology from the police for their mistreatment of the Kurdish Community”.
Aso Kamalî, a spokesperson for the Kurdish People’s Assembly, said: “This aggression is unacceptable and mirrors the systemic oppression many Kurds fled from.
“The UK’s collaboration with the Turkish authorities undermines justice, human rights, and the very notion of democracy and values the UK claim to uphold.”
The six accused appeared at Westminster magistrates on Tuesday 10 December.
A thirty-one-year-old man was also arrested and released without charge.
Following the charges, the Met released a statement on the investigation’s impact on the Kurdish community.
Caroline Haines, who leads local police for the Haringey area, said: “I would like to thank members of the local community for their patience while this investigation has been carried out – especially those from the Kurdish community, who have been particularly impacted by this activity.”
The PKK are said to be a primarily separatist movement that has been fighting for an independent Kurdish State in south-east Turkey since the early 1980s.
Acting Commander Helen Flanagan, from the Met’s Counter Terrorism Command, said: “The charges brought about in this case are very serious and come about following an extensive investigation by our detectives.
“It is important that communities right across London know that where we suspect any kind of potential terrorist activity, then we will look to investigate and take action to disrupt that.”
The Kurdish People’s Assembly continues to call for the immediate release of those arrested and said: “The Kurds came to the UK to escape persecution.
“It is appalling they face similar harassment here. We demand an end to these oppressive actions against the Kurdish community.”
Featured Image Credit: The Kurdish People’s Assembly
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