France: Turkish Official Slams İnvitation To Ex-Pkk Leader

The Turkish delegation head of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) on Monday condemned an invitation to a former PYD/PKK co-leader to a side-event in France.



"To register my protest on the attendance of terrorist Salih Muslim at an event organized by PACE, I am leaving the April session of the Parliamentary Assembly and returning to Turkey," said Akif Cagatay Kilic, in a statement.



Muslim was protected by the French police on his way to the Council of Europe and throughout the event.



"I condemn this event which conflicts the values and standards of the Council of Europe," Kilic said.



Muslim was arrested on Feb. 25 in Prague following Turkey's request to the Czech Republic.



Two days later, he was released by a Czech court on the condition that he would not leave the European Union and appear at future hearings in the extradition case.



On March 3, Muslim was spotted in Berlin, where he also participated in a demonstration organized by PYD/PKK terrorist supporters.



The PYD/PKK is the Syrian branch of the terrorist group PKK, which is responsible for over 40,000 deaths, in a violent campaign against Turkey for more than 30 years.



Muslim, an influential figure of the PYD/PKK terrorist group, is being sought by a Turkish court on suspicion of his involvement in the planning of a terrorist attack carried out in Ankara in 2016.



The March 13, 2016 attack at Guvenpark in Ankara's Kizilay -- a popular shopping area -- had been carried out using an explosives-laden vehicle, which left 37 people dead and dozens others injured. -