Kurd in Switzerland Threatened for Refusing to Work with Sec
Posted: Thu Aug 22, 2013 4:48 pmSwitzerland – A Kurdish refugee in Switzerland, accused of ties with an extremist group linked to al-Qaeda, faced imprisonment and threats of deportation after refusing to act as an informant for one of the country’s security agencies, a Swiss-based newspaper reported.
The Tages Anzeiger newspaper reported last week that the Kurd, identified only by the initials K.T., became a suspect after a 2007 visit to Norway, where he met with Mullah Krekar, former leader of Ansar al-Islam who had been tried by the Norwegian government for openly expressing support for extremist groups.
The paper said that K.T. had been accused of ties with Ansar al-Islam and organizing terrorist cells in Switzerland. It quoted him as saying he was imprisoned for a year and threatened with deportation after refusing to cooperate with the country’s Analysis and Prevention Department (SAP).
K.T. told the newspaper that the purpose of his trip had been to discuss the marriage of Krekar’s relative to one of his friends.
“A few months after my visit with Krekar, I was approached by two SAP secret agents. They kept harassing and forcing me to work with them to spy on Krekar and his friends,” he said, “After I refused to comply I was thrown in prison for over a year.”
K.T. said he was interrogated by two men who identified themselves as SAP agents.
“The men asked me for information about Mullah Krekar and his group,” he said, “Later, they questioned me about the political parties in the Kurdistan Region and why I was studying journalism.”
In 2008, the Swiss parliament formed a committee to investigate the case. It concluded that the Kurdish man was threatened with deportation and imprisonment if he refused to cooperate with the security agencies.
Last month, Sweden’s state radio reported similar cases where Kurdish activists in that country were pressured to act as informants by the secret police.
The Tages Anzeiger newspaper reported last week that the Kurd, identified only by the initials K.T., became a suspect after a 2007 visit to Norway, where he met with Mullah Krekar, former leader of Ansar al-Islam who had been tried by the Norwegian government for openly expressing support for extremist groups.
The paper said that K.T. had been accused of ties with Ansar al-Islam and organizing terrorist cells in Switzerland. It quoted him as saying he was imprisoned for a year and threatened with deportation after refusing to cooperate with the country’s Analysis and Prevention Department (SAP).
K.T. told the newspaper that the purpose of his trip had been to discuss the marriage of Krekar’s relative to one of his friends.
“A few months after my visit with Krekar, I was approached by two SAP secret agents. They kept harassing and forcing me to work with them to spy on Krekar and his friends,” he said, “After I refused to comply I was thrown in prison for over a year.”
K.T. said he was interrogated by two men who identified themselves as SAP agents.
“The men asked me for information about Mullah Krekar and his group,” he said, “Later, they questioned me about the political parties in the Kurdistan Region and why I was studying journalism.”
In 2008, the Swiss parliament formed a committee to investigate the case. It concluded that the Kurdish man was threatened with deportation and imprisonment if he refused to cooperate with the security agencies.
Last month, Sweden’s state radio reported similar cases where Kurdish activists in that country were pressured to act as informants by the secret police.