The four detained members of the Marxist Revolutionary People's Liberation Army/Front (DHKP-C) have been released from prisons in Bruges and Nivelles. | "Go forth, and revolt no more." |
| None of those names sounds terribly Belgian to my untrained ear. |
| Fehriye Erdal | Fehriye Erdal | DHKP-C | Europe | 20060302 | Link |
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| The black sheep in anti-terror war |
| 2008-02-09 |
| The Anvers Court of Appeals on Thursday acquitted seven members of the leftist Revolutionary People's Liberation Party/Front (DHKP/C), including the group's leader, and sentenced three others to suspended sentences for unauthorized possession of firearms and false identity papers. All three, including a suspect wanted in Turkey in connection with a 1996 assassination of a prominent Turkish industrialist, were then released, considering the time they had already spent in jail. Their arrests in Belgium followed the discovery of an arms cache on the Belgian coast in 1999. The judge ruled, however, that the group had no intention of committing terrorist acts in Belgium and added it was not up to the court to assess how the suspects felt about terrorism in general. While acquitting the DHKP/C members of terrorism charges, the court also declined to take into consideration their terrorist activities in other countries. "If the court acts on the basis of the presumption that the DHKP/C's terrorist activities in Turkey, Germany or the Netherlands do not affect the trial in Belgium, it is certain that such an attitude is in violation of the basic principles of the international fight against terrorism, including the relevant UN Security Council decisions," read a statement from the Turkish Foreign Ministry yesterday. It said the ruling will contradict EU laws and EU Council decisions designating the DHKP/C a terrorist group. "It is certain that such rulings will encourage terrorist groups," said the statement. It also implied that Turkey might take the ruling to the European Court of Human Rights, saying Ankara will look into ways to appeal. The DHKP/C, responsible for many terrorist attacks in Turkey, has been on the EU's terror list since May 2002. EU Council officials, contacted by Today's Zaman, declined to comment on the ruling, saying they were still expecting further information on its content. An official, speaking on condition of anonymity, made clear that the decision on what measures to be taken toward a particular group designated as a terrorist organization by the EU was up to individual member states. But if a member state opposes the designation of a group as a terrorist organization, it is expected to bring forward its objections to the council, said the official, adding, however, that there has been no such request from Belgian authorities. The decision was met with criticism in the Belgian media as well. Newspapers presented a hypothetical situation for Belgium in which al-Qaeda terrorists, after committing many acts of violence elsewhere in the world -- but none in Belgian territory -- come to the country and ask for asylum. Thursdays decision is the latest shocking development in the course of the lengthy trial process of the DHKP/C members. It came at the end of a retrial, after Belgiums highest court had ordered a retrial in April of last year, saying that one of the judges handling the first trial in 2006 appeared not to have been impartial. Fehriye Erdal, one of the three DHKP/C terrorists sentenced to suspended imprisonment in the case, is wanted in Turkey for involvement in the 1996 murder of industrialist Özdemir Sabancý. In the 2006 ruling, she was sentenced to four years in prison, but, in a development that outraged Turkey, she escaped before her conviction despite being under surveillance by Belgian security forces and is still on the run. The DHKP/C was also considered a terrorist group in the 2006 decision. I am terrified, said Köksal Toptan, speaker of the Turkish Parliament, of Thursdays decision. It is absolutely terrifying that a group designated as a terrorist organization all across the world is not seen as a terrorist organization. Toptan continued: Terrorism needs to be combated across the globe. Otherwise the entire world will lose the fight against it. Such a decision coming from a court in Belgium, a central EU state, means encouragement of terrorism. According to Toptan, a mentality that lets people walk free of the court because they have not committed any crime in Belgium cannot be part of any global effort to counter terrorism. No one would feel they have to help others in the fight against terrorism. The decision appears to be a blow to the Belgian government, which has been pressing for a tougher stance against terrorism. Interior Minister Patrick Dewael, who earlier lashed out at the DHKP/C as a terrorist group, was silent after Thursdays ruling, saying he would respect the judiciarys decisions. Reports said Belgian intelligence and security organizations, eager to pursue a tougher fight against terrorist groups, were disappointed because they are concerned this would make Belgium look like a backyard of terrorist organizations. |
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| Belgium springs 4 Marxist Revolutionary People's Liberation Army/Front | ||
| 2007-04-23 | ||
The four detained members of the Marxist Revolutionary People's Liberation Army/Front (DHKP-C) have been released from prisons in Bruges and Nivelles.
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| Inquiry into Erdal's escape 'turning into a cover-up' |
| 2006-03-08 |
 The former chief of the Belgian security service VS-SE was run through the mill by a Senate commission on Tuesday as the fallout from the escape of Turkish militant Fehriye Erdal continued. The intelligence service's supervisory body, Committee I, subsequently demanded and won promises from the VS-SE that it would be given insight into more documents relating to Erdal's disappearance. The promise came after the committee's Senate commission had earlier temporarily suspended its meeting out of dissatisfaction about the documents the VS-SE had already released. The security service subsequently promised to release more documents over the surveillance of Erdal. The documents date back to the start of this year. The Committee I will therefore be able to investigate how Erdal managed to disappear while under surveillance by the security service. However, the committee will still not be supplied with every document. Liberal VLD Senator Paul Wille and Socialist SP.A politician Ludwig Vandenhove said former VS-SE boss Koen Dassen wants to only release documents which will not place security service agents in danger. But opposition Christian Democrat CD&V Senator Hugo Vandenberghe said this was not sufficient, demanding that every document declassified. "It would be unacceptable if they would be kept hidden from the Parliament. That would be more like a police state, something that [Interior Minister Patrick] Dewael wants to combat," he said. "I can, of course, not reconcile myself with methods that are those of a police state, namely; that dossiers are covered up because they might be adverse for the government." Earlier, Dassen had read allowed to the commission documents that indicated the security service had warned Dewael three times that Erdal might try and escape. The VS-SE also proposed alternative measures to prevent her escape. The commission will discuss the escape of Erdal again on Wednesday. |
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| Belgian finger pointing over Erdal escape | |||||
| 2006-03-05 | |||||
 The Interior Ministry denied on Friday that escaped Turkish militant Fehriye Erdal could not have been arrested prior to her conviction earlier this week. The ministry said she could neither be arrested based on police criminal law or immigration law, news agency Belga reported.The denial comes after the opposition Christian Democrat CD&V claimed that Erdal could have been arrested during her trial. It said the arrest could have been based on immigration law. Meanwhile, questions have also been raised about claims from Interior Minister Patrick Dewael on Thursday that the security service VS-SE did not anticipate that Erdal would flee. Flemish broadcaster VRT claims it has since obtained documents indicating that the possibility that Erdal would flee was discussed at a crisis government meeting. A decision was then taken to place Erdal under surveillance for 24-hours a day in the lead up to Tuesday's ruling, a ruling in which she was sentenced to four years jail for links to the Turkish militant group DHKP-C. However, Erdal had already disappeared on Monday night despite the Belgian security service's surveillance
Amid the controversy around the disappearance of Fehriye Erdal, it has been alleged that the federal security service VS-SE and police could not agree on the best manner to keep the Turkish militant under surveillance.
Erdal disappeared on Monday night prior to her conviction for links to a criminal group. She and six other members of the Turkish militant group DHKP-C were jailed for four to six years for possession of weapons and forged documents. The government's anti-terrorist unit has since been placed on alert for possible attacks by the DHKP-C. The alert was sparked by a communiqué from the DHKP-C information bureau in Brussels which referred to Brugge Court president Freddy Troch as an inquisitor. The communiqué also said the court case was "a carnival of bad taste presided over by a one-sided, partisan and warlike judge". Belgium was also sharply criticised and the anti-terror group said the language used in the communiqué was very aggressive against the judge. Consequently, the DHKP-C will be placed under intense surveillance over the next few days.
In light of the fact that Turkey's repeated requests for Erdal's extradition has in the past been refused, the security experts claim an abduction carried out by the Turkish security service MIT is possible. They also stress that an abduction was unlikely.
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| Belgium left red faced after Turkish militant disappears | ||||||||||||||||||||
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| Convicted terror member missing in Belgium | |||
| 2006-03-02 | |||
Convicted Turkish DHKP-C militant Fehriye Erdal has disappeared, just a day after being jailed for four years.
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| Tight security as major terrorism trial opens in Belgium |
| 2006-01-24 |
| BRUSSELS The trial of 11 people suspected of trying to overthrow the Turkish government began on Monday in Belgium. Fehriye Erdal and 10 others are believed to belong to the DHKP-C, an extreme left-wing Turkish group called the Marxist Revolutionary People's Liberation Army/Front (DHKPC), which the United States and European Union consider to be a terrorist organisation. The DHKPC wants to overthrow the current Turkish government and says it is prepared to use any means it can to do so. It has already claimed responsibility for a number of terrorist attacks in Turkey, including two suicide bombings in 2001 that killed three Istanbul policemen and an Australian woman. It has also carried out attacks in Germany. Tight security measures were organised at Bruges court. The media turned out on mass for the trial, however, the main suspect, Erdal, was not present to hear the opening remarks. The 11 suspects are being charged with belonging to a terrorist organisation, with belonging to a criminal organisation, fraud, the use of false documents and arms offences. Two of the suspects are also being prosecuted under Belgium's stricter new law against terrorism. Their trials will be another test of how Belgium's new law works. A verdict has still to be returned in the case of 13 men, also charged under the new law, who were accused of providing backup for the Madrid and Casablanca bombings. Those suspects whose trial finished at the end of last year - will be announced guilty or not guilty on 16 February. They are accused of belonging to the Moroccan Islamic Combatant Group, the GICM, a terrorist group which is believed to have links to Al Quaida and which is suspected of planning the attacks on Madrid's trains in March 2004 and the Casablanca bombings in May 2003. |
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| CIA director meets with Turkish leadership |
| 2005-12-14 |
| The US Central Intelligence Agency's (CIA) Director Porter Goss started his second day of meetings in Ankara with a visit to the Police followed by a call on Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan. The fight against the terrorist organization Kurdish Workers' Party (PKK) was discussed in the meetings held Tuesday. Goss stopped by the Police headquarters where he met Security Director General Gokhan Aydiner in the morning. Three messages are reported to have been conveyed to Goss during the talks: "European support for terrorism must be prevented, Fehriye Erdal; the suspect in the Sabanci assassination must be returned and the broadcasting of Roj TV must be stopped." The CIA Director, finding Turkish demands justified, said he will take the necessary steps. His last stop in the Turkish capital was at the Prime Ministry Residence. Goss, in meeting with Erdogan, was accompanied by the National Intelligence Organization (MIT) Under Secretary. The Prime Minister emphasized Turkey expects support in exchange for information about the terrorist organization. The American bureaucrat stressed they want to increase the intelligence shared and developed in cooperation with Turkey. In addition to Police Intelligence Department Head Sabri Uzun, the US Ambassador in Ankara and Goss's two aides took part in the talks. Aydiner pointed to the activities of the terrorist organization PKK-Kongra-Gel. The Police Chief asked the US to step in and put pressure to stop European support of the terrorist organizations activities as well as for the return of Fehriye Erdal to Turkey. Aydiner also mentioned Roj TV which is broadcast from Denmark during their talks. The Chief reiterated the terrorist organization receives instructions from Roj TV and asked for support from Goss to stop this channel. It is also reported that Luai Sakra, arrested for organizing an attack on an Israeli cruise ship in the southern Turkish city of Antalya, was discussed at the talks recently held between the US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Director Robert Mueller and the Police General Director. Mueller pointing out the shortness of the custody period in Turkey said "Al-Qaeda militants such as Luai Sakra must be questioned for a longer time. There is much information that can be obtained from such people. The longer they stay in police custody the more information can be obtained." Aydiner reffering to the increased 28-day custody period in the UK, said, "We are doing what the law system tells us to do." |
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| Belgium Annuls Decision To Extradite Terrorist |
| 2003-04-01 |
| The Belgian Council of State annulled on Monday the decision to extradite terrorist Fehriye Erdal, one of assailants of businessman Ozdemir Sabanci assassination. The Belgian Interior Ministry had decided to extradite Erdal. The Council of State listened to views of the lawyers of the terrorist and the prosecutor on March 20 and said that it would later announce its decision. The Belgian Council of State said that it acted from the view that it had not been proved that the terrorist posed a threat for public security in Belgium as claimed by the Interior Ministry. She just killed Turks, so Belgiums have nothing to fear Erdal, one of the assailants of the assassination of Sabanci Holding Automotive Group Chairman Ozdemir Sabanci, Toyota-Sa General Director Haluk Gorgun and secretary Nilgun Hasefe on January 9, 1996, was captured in Belgium with a false passport in the name of Nese Yildirim on September 26, 1999. Belgium had rejected Turkey's request for Erdal's extradition due to existence of death sentence in laws and at the same time returned political asylum application of the terrorist. I thought that Turkey had renounced the death penalty as part of their application to join the EU? Murat? After serving a year in prison, Erdal was taken under house arrest and is waiting to be tried on charges of crimes she committed in Belgium. Carrying a gun, taking part in activities of a crime gang and using false identity are among these crimes. No danger to Belgium at all. The Belgian Interior Ministry had passed a decree against Erdal's political asylum request two years ago and demanded Erdal's extradition by saying that this person posed a threat for the security of the country. At least they seem not to have lost their minds. The terrorist firstly applied to the Council of State and provided the suspension of the decision. But, she could not seek asylum again since the mentioned decision was on the agenda and was not annulled. Today's decision of the Council of State gives the right to the terrorist to seek political asylum under the auspices of the United Nations (U.N.) High Commissioner for Refugees. Oh ya, they'll do....something Judicial sources say that Belgian Interior Minister Antoine Duquesne can take a new extradition decision regarding Erdal. Interior Ministry officials said that the decision of the Council of State has not officially been notified yet and added that they will make an evaluation after the decision is notified. "We have to kill a goat and examine the entrails. We'll get back to you." |
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