‘Militant’ jailed for smuggling
A German national sought in his homeland for alleged membership of a far-left militant group was sentenced yesterday to a year’s imprisonment for smuggling three illegal immigrants into Greece. Sinan Bozkurt, 30, was arrested early on Wednesday transporting three Turkish nationals who had illegally entered Greece. Police later established that the ethnic Kurd was wanted by the German authorities for alleged involvement in the Dev Sol group during the 1990s, and in a murder. The three migrants – also ethnic Kurds – were sentenced to 10 days’ imprisonment for illegal entry pending deportation to Turkey, although the deportation was suspended while Greek authorities look into their requests for political asylum. Greek authorities are expecting legal documents from Germany before the extradition process starts. Yesterday, the Greek civil servants’ union (ADEDY) and the Athens Labor Center (EKA) called for Bozkurt’s release, arguing that he was an activist for the human rights of Kurds and other Turkish nationals in Turkey.
