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Turkiye detains Australia woman over alleged links to PKK

September 24, 2024 at 8:21 pm

A view of an airplane at the Istanbul Airport in Istanbul, Turkiye on December 6, 2023 [Muhammed Enes Yıldırım – Anadolu Agency]

Turkiye has detained an Australian woman in Istanbul over her alleged links to the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), amid Ankara’s ongoing monitoring of foreign activists and potential operatives of the militant group abroad.

According to Reuters news agency, which cited an unnamed Turkish security source, Turkish authorities apprehended an Australian woman named Cigdem Aslan at Istanbul Airport on 15 September as she prepared to board a flight back to Australia.

She then reportedly appeared in a court in Istanbul on 18 September, and was detained, pending trial, over allegations of “involvement in PKK propaganda in Australia and participation in events organised by groups aligned with the militant organisation”.

On Canberra’s part, the Australian government has, so far, only confirmed that it is providing assistance to a female citizen in Turkiye, without providing any further details.

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