Due to persistent tensions between the Turkish and Kurdish communities in the Flemish city of Ghent, authorities are introducing a ban on gatherings in about ten places in the city from Thursday night.
Members of the Turkish and Kurdish diaspora in all four corners of Belgium have been embroiled in a series of violent confrontations over the last few days. The situation first became heated on Sunday after a family of Kurds who had celebrated Nowruz – the start of the Persian New Year – were attacked in Heusden-Zolder and Houthalen-Helchteren.
The unrest in Ghent started on Monday when Turkish youths held a parade through the city to denounce the presence of the Kurdish movement PKK, considered a terror organisation by the EU.
Since then, three Kurdish businesses have been attacked. In one case, video footage showed some members giving the rallying symbol of the Grey Wolves, a neofascist youth group which opposes the assimilation of the Turkish diaspora into European culture and has strong links to Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's ruling AK Party. Police are investigating whether Turkish groups are behind it but there are also other leads.
The city first called for a return to calm but has now taken extra measures to avoid further escalation. Ghent's city's mayor Mathias De Clercq imposed gathering restrictions and routine identity checks at multiple city locations. "We will not tolerate young people taking law enforcement into their own hands and causing destruction," he said.
Places most at risk
On Tuesday this week, De Clercq held a meeting with the representatives of both communities, but destructive incidents still occurred on Tuesday night at a café on Bevrijdingslaan in Gent, followed by vandalism at a Kurdish bakery on Frans van Ryhovelaan. Police arrested 22 people, of whom half were minors. Judicial investigations will be launched for all offences, according to the mayor while parents of the minors will be visited by the police.
This highlighted the need for further measures. The city will introduce the gathering restriction for groups of ten people or more from 21:00 on Thursday and is valid until 05:00 the next morning for as long as is necessary.
It will enter into force in a dozen locations known for being common gathering points, or those considered a risk by the police. Police will monitor the ban and also carry out systematic identity checks. "We continue to call for calm in cooperation with the communities to avoid instigation," De Clercq said. "The police will maintain high visibility in the area."
