Belgium’s Prime Minister, Alexander De Croo, called for calm on Wednesday after rising tensions between the Turkish and Kurdish communities in the country, days ahead of local elections in Turkey.
“We are asking everyone to calm down, stop the provocations, and continue living together (in harmony) as we have done for decades in our country,” De Croo said.
“Let’s stop… these demonstrations of support for organizations classified as terrorist,” he said, referring to the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK).
There have been repeated clashes between Turks and Kurds in eastern Belgium, including riots on Sunday.
The Turkish Foreign Ministry said “PKK militants” from Leuven were responsible for clashes on Sunday in Limburg.
The PKK is listed as a terrorist organization in Belgium.
NavBel, the council representing Kurdish groups in Belgium, said a Syrian Kurdish family was subjected to a “brutal attack” by Turkey’s ultra-nationalist Grey Wolves.
Following the incident, what is believed to be an anti-Turk attack targeted a cafe in Vise between Monday and Tuesday, when individuals with baseball bats hurt several people.
The public prosecutor’s offices in Limburg and Liege informed AFP they were investigating violent incidents but did not provide further information.
Kurds protested in front of the European Parliament in Brussels on Monday in response to the riots over the weekend.
The protest turned violent and police responded with water cannons to disperse about 200 people who held photos of jailed PKK leader Abdullah Ocalan.
Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan held talks with his Belgian counterpart, Hadja Lahbib on Sunday night, his ministry said.
President Tayyip Erdogan spoke by phone on Tuesday with a 16-year-old boy of Turkish origin who was injured in one of the incidents.
De Croo said Belgium was “following this closely because there are other key moments in the coming days,” referring to Turkey’s local elections on March 31.
