German court convicts former official of banned party
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}A German court has convicted a former leading member of the banned Kurdistan Workers' Party, or PKK, of membership in a terrorist organization and sentenced him to three years and three months in prison.
The Stuttgart state court said Thursday that the 47-year-old defendant, a Turkish national whose name it didn't release, was one of four PKK "sectoral leaders" in Germany and a leading official with the group in the Dortmund and Duesseldorf areas.
It said the man came to Germany in 2006 and was arrested in February 2016. The verdict can be appealed.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The PKK, which wants greater autonomy for Kurds living in Turkey, is considered a terrorist group by Turkey, the U.S. and the European Union.