U.S. brands PKK's Iranian wing, PEJAK, a terrorist organization

"With today's action, we are exposing PEJAK's terrorist ties to the PKK and supporting Turkey's efforts to protect its citizens from attack," Levey said.Â

 

Turkey and Iran have been long fighting against the terrorist movements operated by both the PEJAK and the PKK, which is already listed as a terrorist group by Ankara and much of the international community, including the EU and the United States.

 

The action means that any bank accounts or other financial assets found in the United States belonging to PEJAK must be frozen. Americans also are forbidden from contributing money or doing business with the organization.

 

The department said that PEJAK was created to appeal to Iranian Kurds and that PKK had selected five of its leaders to serve as PEJAK leaders, including Hajji Ahmadi, a PKK affiliate who became PEJAK’s general secretary.

 

It also said PEJAK had an armed wing called the East Kurdistan Defense Forces, which had been acting independently in Iran. But the Treasury said that the PKK high command had intervened and recalled them to northern Iraq.