Istanbul [Türkiye], June25: A 35-year-old German has been released from prison in Turkey after completing a sentence of more than six years for membership in a terrorist organization, but is being held pending deportation, his lawyer told dpa on Monday.
Patrick K was handed the sentence in October 2018 after being found guilty of attempting to join the People's Defence Units or YPG, a Kurdish militia active in Syria. He was released from prison in Ankara.
Asked about the case, the German Foreign Ministry did not initially comment.
According to the Turkish authorities, Patrick K, who was 29 at the time, was detained in a military exclusion zone near the border with Syria in March 2018. He was charged with attempting to join the YPG.
His family said he was on a hiking trip in Turkey.
Both the YPG and the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) are seen as terrorist organizations in Turkey. The United States and the European Union have listed the PKK as a terrorist organization, but the YPG is an ally of US forces combating the Islamic State terrorist militia in the region.
Source: Qatar Tribune