NOVEMBER 4 PKK ATTACKS IN SWITZERLAND

C O N F I D E N T I A L BERN 005779 BUDAPEST, ANKARA, ATHENS, AND USNATO FOR PDAS VERSHBOW E.O. 12356: DECL: OADR TAGS: PTER TU SZ SUBJECT: NOVEMBER 4 PKK ATTACKS IN SWITZERLAND REFS: A) STATE 341663; B) BERN 5719 (NOTAL) ¶1. CONFIDENTIAL -- ENTIRE TEXT. ¶2. SUMMARY: THE GOS HAS NOT TAKEN SPECIFIC ACTION AGAINST KURDISH GROUPS AS A RESULT OF THE NOVEMBER 4 ATTACKS ON TURKISH ESTABLISHMENTS IN SWITZERLAND. THE TURKISH GOVERNMENT HAS REITERATED ITS REQUEST THAT THE PKK BE BANNED IN SWITZERLAND, BUT THE GOS SAYS THAT THE GROUP DOES NOT FORMALLY EXIST HERE. AS A RESULT OF THE ATTACKS, SWISS POLICE ARE WATCHING KURDISH GROUPS MORE CLOSELY. END SUMMARY ¶3. AS REPORTED REF B, A SERIES OF ARSON ATTACKS ON TURKISH ESTABLISHMENTS WERE CARRIED OUT NOVEMBER 4 IN SEVERAL SWISS LOCALITIES: BERN, ZURICH, BASEL, OLTEN, SOLOTHURN, AND BIBEREST. AN UNIDENTIFIED PERSON THREW A MOLOTOV COCKTAIL AT THE TURKISH EMBASSY BUILDING IN BERN; NO DAMAGE WAS REPORTED. NO CASUALTIES WERE REPORTED IN CONNECTION WITH ANY OF THE INCIDENTS. ONE SUSPECT HAS BEEN ARRESTED IN ZURICH. ¶4. SWISS AUTHORITIES HAVE TAKEN A LOW-KEY APPROACH TO THE ATTACKS. DFA DIVISION I (US AND EUROPE) DEPUTY DIRECTOR PHILIPPE WELTI TOLD US ON NOVEMBER 10 THAT THE NOVEMBER 4 ATTACKS WERE NOT AS SERIOUS AS THE JUNE 24 INCIDENTS AND THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT THEREFORE SAW NO NEED TO TAKE SPECIFIC ACTION OR TO MAKE A SIGNIFICANT PUBLIC COMMENT. WELTI SAID THE DFA RELEASED A BRIEF PRESS COMMUNIQUE AFTER THE NOVEMBER 4 ATTACKS WHICH CONTAINED THE FOLLOWING POINTS: -- THE DFA CONDEMNS THE ATTACKS. -- THE SWISS GOVERNMENT WILL NOT TOLERATE ACTS OF VIOLENCE EVEN IF UNDERTAKEN FOR POLITICAL PURPOSES. AS FAR AS WELTI CAN DETERMINE, THIS COMMUNIQUE WAS IGNORED BY THE SWISS MEDIA. ¶5. WELTI TOLD US THE TURKISH GOVERNMENT HAD NOT FORMALLY CONTACTED THE GOS REGARDING THE NOVEMBER 4 ATTACKS BUT HAD REITERATED ITS REQUEST FOR A BAN ON THE PKK IN SWITZERLAND. ¶6. WELTI COMMENTED THAT IT WAS DIFFICULT FOR THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT TO TAKE FORMAL ACTION AGAINST THE PKK, WHICH HAS NO CORPORATE IDENTITY IN SWITZERLAND. HE SAID THAT MANY TURKISH KURDS RESIDE LEGALLY IN SWITZERLAND. SOME PARTICIPATE IN RATHER INNOCUOUS-SOUNDING GROUPS, E.G., SPORTS AND SOCIAL CLUBS. THE GOS KNOWS SOME OF THE GROUPS HAVE PKK TIES, BUT THE PKK ITSELF HAS NO OFFICIAL HEADQUARTERS. WELTI ADDED THAT THE SWISS POLICE WERE OBSERVING KURDISH GROUPS MORE CLOSELY AS A RESULT OF THE ATTACKS. FLORA