Knife attack on journalist Erk Acarer in Germany
Click to read the article in Turkish (1) (2) / Kurdish
BirGün newspaper columnist Erk Acarer was targeted in a knife attack in the yard of his home yesterday (July 7).
Announcing the attack on Twitter, he said he didn't have life-threatening injuries and was heading to the hospital.
"I know the perpetrators. I'll never surrender to fascism. Nobody should be worried, these days will pass," he wrote.
Hayati bir riskim yok hastaneye gidiyoruz. Failleri biliyorum. Asla faşizme teslim olmayacağım. Kimse endişelenmesin bu günler geçecek! https://t.co/iVfKRnQlXX
— Erk Acarer (@eacarer) July 7, 2021
Acarer released a video message on Twitter today, after returning from the hospital. He said he was attacked by three people who had weapons but did not use them because there were so many witnesses.
"This is proof that everything we say about the Islamist, fascist AKP-MHP government is true," he said. I of course have knowledge and an idea about who the perpetrators are [but] the security forces said to me, 'Don't disclose a name for a few days, it would make it more difficult for us."
Having multiple arrest warrants against himself in Turkey in cases concerning his articles and social media messages, Acarer has been living in Germany since mid-2017.
DİSK Basın-İş press workers' union denounced the attack on Twitter, saying, "Some groups that turned out to be fed with dirty money and by the mafia attacked Erk Acarer in the yard of his home in Berlin."
"You cannot prevent the truth from coming out with such attacks. We stand with Erk Acarer," said the union.
CLICK - Media Monitoring Database: Violence towards journalists continues
CLICK - Twelve attacks on journalists in six months
(HA/VK)