The scandal about the prevention of a delegation trip of the peace initiative #Delegation4Peace from Germany to South Kurdistan draws circles. The German Left Party DIE LINKE is outraged that delegates were detained by the police at Düsseldorf airport and prevented from leaving the country for Hewlêr (Erbil). The group includes, among others, the co-chair of the party faction in Hamburg Parliament, Cansu Özdemir, Martin Dolzer from the People's Initiative against Arms Exports, who had been delegated to participate on behalf of the Member of the Parliament Andrej Hunko, activists from the alliance Ende Gelände and also Kurdish exiled politician Abdullah Demirbaş, former mayor of the Sur district in Amed (tr. Diyarbakir). The purpose of the trip was to obtain information on the ground about Turkey's military actions in the southern part of Kurdistan in northern Iraq, which have been ongoing for weeks, and to draw attention to the attacks, which are illegal under international law. In the justification for the travel ban, the Federal Police stated that the delegation could damage the reputation of the Federal Republic of Germany abroad.

"At its meeting today, the party executive of DIE LINKE expressed its outrage at this incident and expressed its solidarity with the comrades affected," reads a statement by Jörg Schindler, federal director of the Left Party. "We expect immediate and comprehensive clarification of the incident from the Federal Government and the Foreign Office. It cannot be that politicians who exercise their rights are hindered in this way in their work. German authorities must not become Erdogan's henchmen."

Delegates to be deported

Parallel to the travel blockade by German authorities, about 25 people from Germany, Switzerland, Slovenia, Italy and other countries are currently stuck in the airport in Hewlêr and are not allowed to enter the capital city. It is assumed that those affected will be deported as of tonight. Among them are also members of the youth association of the Left Party. However, part of the peace delegation is already in South Kurdistan, including Hakan Taş, a member of the left-wing parliamentary group in the Berlin House of Representatives. He travelled to Hewlêr via Istanbul on Friday, but was detained for 15 hours by KDP authorities in the security area of the airport.

DIE LINKE: Iraq's sovereignty is disregarded

The Turkish invasion of South Kurdistan has been ongoing since April 23. "The attacks allegedly directed against positions of the PKK repeatedly hit the civilian population, recently a refugee camp was shelled by armed drones. The sovereignty of Iraq is being disregarded and Turkey's military sphere of influence, in addition to northern Syria, is being extended to other Kurdish areas. NATO and the German government are silent on this," explains the party executive of the Left Party.

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