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Europol underlines threat posed by PKK to EU

The terrorist organisation uses EU states as bases for administrative, recruitment, financing purposes, according to Europol's annual terrorism report.

AA Archive

Europol's Terrorism Situation and Trend Report (TE-SAT) is “a situational overview, presenting figures and developments within the terrorism landscape in the EU. Europol publishes the TE-SAT on a yearly basis, written by experts.” / Photo: AA Archive

Europol, the European Union’s law enforcement agency, has highlighted the threat that the PKK terrorist organisation poses to the bloc’s member states in a report released on Wednesday.

The agency in its annual terrorism report revealed that members of some European far-left groups and anarchists have been training and fighting alongside PKK terrorists in northern Iraq, southeastern Türkiye and more recently in northeastern Syria, where most of the terrorist group’s attacks have taken place.

“The PKK is very active in the EU, mostly using member states as bases for administrative, recruitment and financing purposes,” it said, adding that drug trafficking and fraud are among its main income sources in the EU, which are used to finance its terrorist campaigns.

It said the PKK also operates an extensive propaganda apparatus across Europe.

How Europe became a safe haven for the PKK

According to the agency, in 2022, Germany arrested four people and Italy one person for their connections to the PKK.

In its more than 35-year terror campaign against Türkiye, the PKK – listed as a terrorist organisation by Türkiye, the US, the UK and the EU – has been responsible for the deaths of more than 40,000 people, including women, children and infants.