Berlin Israeli consulate attack

Attack on the Israeli consulate in Berlin
Part of the Kurdish–Turkish conflict
Date	17 February 1999; 25 years ago
Location	Israeli consulate, Berlin, Germany
Coordinates	52°29′00″N 13°17′20″E / 52.48333°N 13.28889°E
Type	Protests, vandalism, attempted raid
Motive	Revenge for alleged Mossad involvement in the capture of Abdullah Öcalan
Organised by	PKK supporters
Outcome	See Aftermath
Deaths	3
Non-fatal injuries	14

The attack on the Israeli consulate in Berlin was perpetrated by PKK supporters on the Israeli consulate in Berlin, Germany, on 17 February 1999. Three people were killed and 14 were injured after security forces at the consulate opened fire on the PKK supporters.^[1]

Background

In October 1998 Abdullah Öcalan, leader of the PKK, was forced to leave Syria for Moscow, Russia, where he was not allowed to stay, before flying to Rome, Italy. The Italian government did not want to allow Öcalan to stay, however they were legally not permitted to extradite him to Turkey, where he could face the death penalty. After being denied entrance to Germany, the Netherlands and France, Öcalan went to Greece on 1 February 1999. He was captured on 15 February 1999, while being transferred from the Greek embassy to Jomo Kenyatta International Airport in Nairobi, in an operation by the Millî İstihbarat Teşkilâtı, with alleged help from the CIA and Mossad.^[2]

Attack

Worldwide protests broke out after the news of Öcalan's capture, which took place in Kenya by Turkish intelligence, with cooperation of Greece. 55 to 200 PKK supporters armed with iron bars stormed the Israeli consulate in Berlin on 17 February, accusing the Mossad of allegedly helping the Turkish government in kidnapping Öcalan. When the protesters managed to break through police ranks and enter the consulate building, Israeli security opened fire on the attackers, killing three and injuring 14. Later, German police arrested 30 PKK supporters and cordoned off all area as helicopters circled over the consulate building.^[3]

Aftermath

In the immediate aftermath, Benjamin Netanyahu defended the actions of the security guards, saying that protesters had attempted to take a weapon from them. Israel increased the guard on all its missions abroad.^[4]

The Israeli ambassador to Germany at the time, Avi Primor, later disputed the contention that in shooting at the protestors, the security guards had acted in self-defence: "From today's perspective we can see that it was not a case of self-defence."^[5]

References

^ "3 KURDS SHOT DEAD BY ISRAELI GUARDS AT BERLIN PROTEST". The New York Times. 1999-02-18. Archived from the original on 2023-03-21. Retrieved 2016-12-16.
^ By TIM WEINERFEB. 20, 1999 (1999-02-20). "U.S. Helped Turkey Find and Capture Kurd Rebel". New York Times. Archived from the original on 2021-03-06. Retrieved 2016-12-16.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
^ the Associated Press (17 February 1999). "Three Kurds killed in Berlin shootout". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 2023-04-23. Retrieved 2016-12-16.
^ "Attack on Israeli Consulate in Berlin". mfa.gov.il. 17 February 1999. Archived from the original on 2023-03-21. Retrieved 2019-01-28.
^ "Berlin: Februar 1999: Schüsse im israelischen Konsulat". Der Tagesspiegel Online (in German). ISSN 1865-2263. Archived from the original on 2023-11-08. Retrieved 2023-10-09.