The Kurdish community in the Swiss capital Bern has called on the French authorities to ensure a speedy investigation of the Paris attack and to classify the triple murder as a terrorist attack. "There is no question that the attack was a political killing. We demand that this be publicly admitted by the relevant authorities. It is intolerable that the character of this massacre is denied," said Burhan Karakoç, co-chair of the Kurdish People's Council, at a rally in Bern. Berjîn Zenda Women's Council also called for the gathering.

On Friday a week ago, a 69-year-old Frenchman shot dead three members of the Kurdish community in front of the Ahmet Kaya cultural centre in the tenth district of Paris; Evîn Goyî (Emine Kara), KCK executive council member, YPJ veteran in the fight against ISIS and leader of the Kurdish women's movement; Mîr Perwer (Mehmet Şirin Aydın), artist and political refugee from Turkey; and Abdurrahman Kızıl, long-time activist who also had to leave his homeland due to political persecution. Three other people were injured.

"No one within our community believes it is a coincidence," said Karakoç. The deadly attack is too close to the anniversary of the murders ten years ago of Sakine Cansız (Sara), Fidan Doğan (Rojbîn) and Leyla Şaylemez (Ronahî). The three Kurdish revolutionaries were shot dead by a Turkish contract killer on 9 January 2013 - also in Paris and also in the tenth district of the city.

"In view of this, it seems that the shooter had deliberately chosen his victims. The all too quickly presented thesis of xenophobic motivation of a lone perpetrator is therefore more than unacceptable. There is no doubt that Turkish circles were involved in the attack," Karakoç said.