In Hanover, the police prevented a Kurdish funeral service on Sunday and detained those who commemorated them for hours. Kurdish organizations see this as another case of repression against the Kurdish freedom movement in Germany.

A memorial event last weekend was initially supposed to take place in a rented hall. The Kurdish community there wanted to remember fighters who had died in recent years as members of the Kurdish guerrillas. According to the organizers: inside thepoliceinto the premises and declared that commemoration with reference to the PKK was not permitted. The city of Hanover had previously banned the event.

The police justified the ban with what they believed to be a possible connection to the banned Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK). The city then issued a prohibition order for the entire city area. Numerous police forces were deployed to enforce the ban.

The participantsrelocatedThe event then moved to the Democratic Kurdish Society Center on Kornstrasse. The police operation continued there. Emergency services surrounded the building and prevented those present from continuing the commemoration. According to the co-chairman of the Association of Families of the Fallen (KOMAW), Xoşnav Ata, around 200 people were inside the police cordon. He spoke of people being held and treated badly.

The police kept people under police measures for hours. In total, the personal details of 96 participants were recorded. Five people had to be given medical care by rescue workers during the operation. The police initiated numerous criminal proceedings on suspicion of violations of the association law.

The Anti-Kurdish Racism Information Center (IAKR)reportedciting witnesses that the emergency services filmed the interior and confiscated a person's cell phone. At least one person has also been arrested. According to witnesses, this person was threatened with deportation. The operation didn't end until around 10 p.m.

Criminal trials against Kurdish activists in Hamburg, Berlin and Stuttgart

Who was commemorated?

Since the beginning of the peace process between the PKK and Turkey, the names of numerous guerrilla fighters who have fallen in the past decades have been published. Commemorative events are therefore currently taking place in Kurdistan and Europe.

For many of the Kurds living in Germany, this is about relatives. KON-MED, the Confederation of Kurdistan Communities in Germany", points out that behind the published names are parents, siblings and other family members who live in Germany and want to mourn together. In recent weeks, larger public memorial events have also taken place in Northern Kurdistan and Turkey.

CON-MEDcondemned the police operation in Hanover and stated that the relatives and friends of the deceased had been deprived of the space to mourn together. The association described the action as the criminalization of Kurdish memory.

Those tooIAKRsharply criticizes the police operation and also rejects the criminalization of Kurdish mourning and memorial events. A statement from the IAKR states that collective remembrance of the deceased is a practice protected by fundamental rights.

The police justify their actions, among other things, with a judicial search warrant. According to the IAKR, however, this does not explain the extent of the deployment. Why it would have been necessary to stop a mourning event and hold around 200 people for hours is incomprehensible. The IAKR therefore expresses considerable doubts about the proportionality of the police operation.

Dissolution of the PKK: A step backwards for the revolutionary movement

Repression against the Kurdish movement

The operation in Hanover is part of a larger context of repression against the Kurdish freedom movement. The PKK activity ban has existed in Germany since 1993. In recent years, numerous Kurdish activists have been prosecuted under Section 129b of the Criminal Code for membership in a foreign organization classified as terrorist.

TheProceedingsare often directed against political activities that are not easily prosecuted as criminal offenses outside Germany. In March 2026, according to the legal aid fund AZADÎ, six Kurds were in German prisons due to political persecution.

AZADÎcriticizedin particular, that so-called “front work for the PKK” is now also being pursued and this could include political activities at the local club level. Such an approach by the security authorities leads to a general suspicion of terrorism against all Kurdish politically active people in Germany.

After a Kurdish concert was banned in Hamburg: “Our language and cultural customs are our resistance”

Corresponding procedures were continued in 2026. So condemned thatStuttgart Higher Regional CourtOn March 18, Kurdish activist Ramazan Yıldırım was sentenced to three years and ten months in prison for membership in the PKK. In January condemned thatMunich Higher Regional Courta Kurdish activist received a prison sentence of one year and three months on probation for PKK membership.

Repression also includes restrictions and harassment at public gatherings. YPG, YPJ and PYD flags are repeatedly banned during demonstrations. These bans are sometimes used by the police as an opportunity to attack demonstrations and break them up with violence.

The postPolice storm Kurdish memorial in Hanoverappeared firstperspective.