SULAIMANI, Kurdistan Region — The Friday attack on a Kurdish cultural center, which targeted the Kurdish diaspora in France, caused international and local outrage.
In the attack, three Kurdish people, originally from northern Kurdistan (southeastern Turkey), were killed and three others injured, according to witnesses and prosecutors.
The attack was perpetrated by a 69-year-old gunman on Ahmet Kaya Cultural Centre in the 10th district of Paris, an area crowded with shops and restaurants and populated by many Kurds in the capital.
The criminal was described by police as white and a French national, and was previously charged with racist violence.
A short profile of the 69-year-old gunman who killed three #Kurds at a cultural center in #Paris on Friday pic.twitter.com/FMvv41n62S
— Zoom News (@zoomnewskrd) December 24, 2022
Following the attack, before entering a hairdressing salon, the assailant was arrested.
Among the victims is the popular Kurdish musician Mir Perwer, originally from the Kurdish town of Varto in Turkey’s Mus province. He took exile after being sentenced by the Turkish government in the last recent years.
Popular #Kurdish musician and singer #MirPerwer was among the three killed in the #Paris attack on Friday. Born in Varto, a town in #Turkey's Mus province, he took exile after being sentenced by the #Turkish government in the last recent years
🎥: social media #mîrperwer pic.twitter.com/Q0uAo1hegd
— Zoom News (@zoomnewskrd) December 24, 2022
Following the attack, French President Emmanuel Macron responded to the tragedy, saying the Kurds of France have been the target of “a heinous attack in the heart of Paris,” adding that their thoughts are with the victims and their families.
Les Kurdes de France ont été la cible d’une odieuse attaque au cœur de Paris. Pensées aux victimes, aux personnes qui luttent pour vivre, à leurs familles et proches. Reconnaissance à nos forces de l’ordre pour leur courage et leur sang-froid.
— Emmanuel Macron (@EmmanuelMacron) December 23, 2022
President of the Kurdistan Region Nechirvan Barzani expressed his condolences to the families of the victims, calling on the French government to “bring justice to the victims and their families.”
Je condamne l’assassinat des trois Kurdes à Paris. Je remercie le président @EmmanuelMacron pour sa réaction si positive. Je suis convaincu que le gouvernement français rendra justice aux victimes. La France restera un soutien fondamental pour le peuple du Kurdistan.
— Nechirvan Barzani (@IKRPresident) December 23, 2022
Masrour Barzani, the Kurdistan Region’s Prime Minister said in a tweet he was “deeply troubled by the heinous attack” on the Kurds in Paris, calling on the Kurdish diaspora to “exercise restraint.”
“I trust our French partners will spare no effort to protect the Kurdish communities across the country and bring the perpetrators to justice,” Barzani added.
I’m deeply troubled by today’s heinous attack on the Kurdish community in #Paris.
My thoughts are with the families of the victims. I urge the Kurdish diaspora to exercise restraint. Let’s not excuse violence in any form.
— Masrour Barzani (@masrourbarzani) December 23, 2022
General Commander of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) Mazloum Abdi said the attack against the Kurdish diaspora in Paris “targets the Kurdish cause and must be condemned,” adding that they are confident that the French President and judiciary will reveal the attackers.
Nous condamnons l'attentat qui a visé des activiste kurdes à Paris.
Il s'agit d'une attaque politique visant la cause kurde.
Nous faisons confiance au président Macron et aux judiciaires françaises pour demander des Châtiment aux auteurs.
Nos condoléances aux familles de— Mazloum Abdî مظلوم عبدي (@MazloumAbdi) December 23, 2022
The attack came almost 10 years after the murder of three Kurdish women activists in Paris in January 2013, including a co-founder of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK).
The London-based Kurdish People’s Assembly released a statement calling the Paris attack an “organized political massacre,” urging the international community to “understand these incidents as part of Turkey’s comprehensive policies of regression and genocide against the Kurds.”
The statement added that Kurds in Britain will gather on Saturday in front of the French Embassy in London to protest the “brutal attack” and demand collaboration between the UK, EU and France to ensure the protection of the Kurdish diaspora living in Europe.
Today’s attack in Paris is an organised political massacre, which has resulted in the death of three members of the Kurdish community in France.
Kurds in Britain will gather tomorrow to protest this attack on the Kurdish community. #ParisMassacreOfKurds pic.twitter.com/09A5avTYSL
— Kurdish People’s Assembly (@KurdishAssembly) December 23, 2022
Last updated on December 25, 2022, 2:00 p.m.
