TOP LEADER OF KURDISH DEMOCRATIC UNION PARTY ARRESTED IN CZECH, MAY BE EXTRADITED TO TURKEY

Salih Muslim (ESMA CAKIR – ROMA / DHA)

On February 25, the Czech authorities arrested Salih Muslim, a leader of the Syrian Kurdish Democratic Union Party (PYD), in the Czech capital Prague upon an official request from Turkey, according to the Turkish Anadolu Agency.

In late 2016, the Turkish Interior Ministry issued an arrest warrant for Salih Muslim. On February 14 2018 the ministry placed Muslim on its “most wanted terrorists” list and offered a bounty of nearly $1 million.

According to Anadolu Agency, Czech officials said that Salih Muslim will be produced before a court which will decide whether or not he would be remanded in custody. The sources added that the Czech authorities had asked Turkey to submit the necessary documents for Muslim’s extradition.

Meanwhile, Turkish security officials confirmed that Turkish Ministry of Justice had begun an administrative process to extradite Salih Muslim, according to Anadolu Agency.

Salih Muslim occupied the position of the PYD’s Co-Chairman from 2010 to 2017. During his term, the Kurdish party built its alliance with the US and founded the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) in eastern Syria. Muslim played a key role in this process, according to Syrian and Turkish sources.

Due to his key role in crafting the PYD-US relations, the extradition of Salih Muslim will likely lead to more tension between the two allies, as they have disagreed lately on issues related to the Turkish attack on the PYD-held Afrin area.

Comments

Why States Still Use Barrel Bombs

Smoke ascends after a Syrian military helicopter allegedly dropped a barrel bomb over the city of Daraya on Jan. 31.(FADI DIRANI/AFP/Getty Images) Summary Barrel bombs are not especially effective weapons. They are often poorly constructed; they fail to detonate more often than other devices constructed for a similar purpose; and their lack of precision means they can have a disproportionate effect on civilian populations. However, combatants continue to use barrel bombs in conflicts, including in recent and ongoing conflicts in Africa and the Middle East, and they are ideally suited to the requirements of resource-poor states. Analysis Barrel bombs are improvised devices that contain explosive filling and shrapnel packed into a container, often in a cylindrical shape such as a barrel. The devices continue to be dropped on towns all over Syria . Indeed, there have been several documented cases of their use in Iraq over the past months, and residents of the city of Mosul, which was re

Russia Looks East for New Oil Markets

Click to Enlarge In the final years of the Soviet Union, Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev began orienting his foreign policy toward Asia in response to a rising Japan. Putin has also piloted a much-touted pivot to Asia, coinciding with renewed U.S. interest in the area. A good expression of intent was Russia's hosting of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in 2012 in Vladivostok, near Russia's borders with China and North Korea. Although its efforts in Asia have been limited by more direct interests in Russia's periphery and in Europe, Moscow recently has been able to look more to the east. Part of this renewed interest involves finding new export markets for Russian hydrocarbons. Russia's economy relies on energy exports, particularly crude oil and natural gas exported via pipeline to the West. However, Western Europe is diversifying its energy sources as new supplies come online out of a desire to reduce its dependence on Russian energy supplies . This has

LONDON POLICE INDIRECTLY ENCOURAGE CRIMINALS TO ATTACK RUSSIAN DIPLOMATIC PROPERTY

ILLUSTRATIVE IMAGE A few days ago an unknown perpetrator trespassed on the territory of the Russian Trade Delegation in London, causing damage to the property and the vehicles belonging to the trade delegation , Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said during the September 12 press briefing. The diplomat revealed the response by the London police was discouraging. Police told that the case does not have any prospects and is likely to be closed. This was made despite the fact that the British law enforcement was provided with video surveillance tapes and detailed information shedding light on the incident. By this byehavior, British law inforcements indirectly encourage criminals to continue attacks on Russian diplomatic property in the UK. Zakharova’s statement on “Trespassing on the Russian Trade Mission premises in London” ( source ): During our briefings, we have repeatedly discussed compliance with the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations, specif

Search This Blog