MOSCOW (Sputnik) — The protest turned violent after German police officers were attacked by the protesters, local media reported, citing police. The police prepared teargas and water cannons to respond to the possible aggravation of the situation. Several people have reportedly been detained.
According to German media, thousands of Kurds participated in a rally, demanding that the Turkish authorities release from prison Abdullah Ocalan, the leader of the PKK, which is outlawed as a terrorist organization in Turkey, the European Union, and the United States.
A scene from Kurds’ Düsseldorf meeting: This is how German authorities react to peaceful rallies #twitterkurds #nopasaran # pic.twitter.com/IUL5apTths
— Duygu Yildiz (@duygumuyildiz) 4 ноября 2017 г.
In line with the legislation, the rally's participants were not allowed to bring banners or flags with the PKK symbols or the pictures of Ocalan to the rally. The ban, however, was massively violated, according to reports.
✊ #Germany November 4 01:00pm Cops escalating #FreedomForOcalan demo #Düsseldorf Cops demand people put away flags with portrait of #Ocalan pic.twitter.com/JnDTJhHju3
— laughing lenin (@laughinglenin) 4 ноября 2017 г.
Moreover, Kurdish rallies in the German cities triggered support in Ankara, since their participants call for Ocalan's release, who was sentenced to life imprisonment in Turkey.
In September, the German ambassador to Turkey was summoned by the country's Foreign Ministry over the Kurdish culture festival in Germany's Cologne, which was allegedly organized by a PKK branch.
