By Zeynep Yesildag
ISTANBUL (AA) - The alleged ringleader of the terrorist group PKK's women's group in Norway, recently captured in a joint operation by Turkish Intelligence (MIT) and Istanbul police, is now facing trial in Türkiye for leading a terrorist group with a possible prison sentence of over 22 years.
Turkish prosecutors’ indictment released Thursday stressed that at a meeting in the capital Oslo, terrorist sympathizers living in Norway took steps to establish a group called the so-called “Kurdistan Solidarity Foundation.” A PKK group alleged to be a Kurdish branch of the Red Crescent was also officially recognized as an aid group in Norway, it said.
The indictment also mentioned the involvement of the Mesopotamia Kurdish Culture Association in Stavanger, Norway, also with ties to the terrorist group.
- Defendant protested for release of terrorist leader
The indictment said that in the 1990s, the defendant Sirin Tokpinar had an informal marriage with PKK terrorist member Kasim Kocu, now deceased, adding that Tokpinar visited Türkiye every year and did research and prepared reports on families associated with the terrorist group that she met.
Tokpinar confirmed her participation in actions connected to 2012 protests for the release of terrorist PKK leader Abdullah Ocalan in front of the Council of Europe, as well as a 2014 visit to northern Iraq’s Qandil region, where the terrorist group is based.
In May 2019, the defendant collected financial contributions on behalf of the PKK and transported them to members of the terrorist group in northern Iraq through Germany, the indictment said.
- Videos confirms participation in PKK activities
The indictment said that the defendant attended meetings and events organized by the terrorist group in Norway, and cellphone videos of these activities were discovered.
Tokpinar fled to Norway illegally 30 years ago with her four children.
The Turkish court accepted the indictment, which seeks some 15-22 years in prison for Tokpinar on the charge of leading an armed terrorist organization.
In its more than 35-year terror campaign against Türkiye, the PKK — listed as a terrorist organization by Türkiye, the US, and EU — has been responsible for the deaths of more than 40,000 people, including women, children, and infants.