The trial of Kurdish activist Mehmet Karaca has begun at the Berlin Court of Appeal. The Federal Prosecutor’s Office accuses the 50-year-old man of having been a member of the now-disbanded Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) from 2014 until his arrest last year. Among other things, he is alleged to have led various “PKK sectors” in Germany, according to the indictment read out on Monday.
However, the charges against Karaca only refer to two periods in 2014/2015 and 2024; what he is alleged to have done in the meantime remains unclear. According to the Federal Prosecutor’s Office, another focus of his work was the monitoring of alleged donations to the PKK. In addition, Karaca is said to have organized “propaganda events and gatherings.” The charge against him is membership in a “terrorist” organization abroad under Section 129a.
Mehmet Karaca was arrested in Berlin at the end of November and has been in custody at Moabit Prison ever since. At the start of the trial, he issued a statement through his defense attorney, Berlin-based lawyer Lukas Theune. He did not address the charges against him, but stated that he had always been committed to peace and democracy.
The start of the trial was watched by numerous spectators. The court initially set hearing dates until the end of November, with the next one scheduled for tomorrow, Tuesday. The trial is being monitored by the solidarity group “Free Mehmet Karaca,” which has announced that it will publish regular reports on the hearing days. The legal aid fund AZADÎ e.V. is also following the trial. The Cologne-based association had accused the Federal Prosecutor’s Office of “clearly rejecting Abdullah Öcalan’s call for peace” at the end of February and “the PKK’s efforts to end the armed struggle and dissolve itself.”