THE HAGUE: The daughter of an Iranian-Arab activist killed in the Netherlands last month linked his death to political conflict in the Middle East, and warned other exiles in Europe to be on their guard.
Ahmad Mola Nissi, 52, was gunned down by an unidentified assailant in front of his home in The Hague on Nov. 8 in a suspected political killing.
Hawra Nissi said her father’s death was reminiscent of a string of murders of Iranian dissidents in Europe in the 1990s.
“Europe seems safe, but be careful,” she told Reuters in an interview.
Mola Nissi established the Arab Struggle Movement for the Liberation of Ahwaz (ASMLA), which seeks a separate state in Iran’s oil-rich southwestern Khuzestan province, in 1999.
Since his murder, his family have been under Dutch police protection at a safe house.
“We came here to be safe but we don’t feel safe. European governments should do more to secure the safety of activists,” Hawra, 25, said.
Ahvazi Arabs are a minority in mainly ethnic Persian Iran, and some see themselves as victims of occupation and want independence or autonomy.
“The family is open to all scenarios. Iran is a prime suspect...,” Hawra said.
Police are exploring a possible link between Nissi’s killing and the unsolved murder of another Iranian near Amsterdam in December 2015, a spokeswoman said.
They are looking for two suspects believed to have gunned down Ali Motamed.
The police declined to comment on the circumstances of Motamed’s death or a motive, but Iranian media have linked him to exiled Iranian opposition Shi’ite group the People’s Mujahideen Organization of Iran (PMOI), which would have made him a potential target.
A man detained in relation to Nissi’s death has since been released, the spokeswoman added.
The most prominent among a string of killings and disappearances of Iranian dissidents in the 1980s and 1990s was the shooting of three Iranian Kurdish opposition leaders in Berlin in 1992, which a German court ruled had been ordered by the government in Tehran.
Be careful, daughter of murdered Iranian activist warns exiles
Be careful, daughter of murdered Iranian activist warns exiles
Syrian government takes over Qamishli airport security in Hasaka
- Qamishli airport has been out of service for the past 15 years and was the only major airport under SDF control
- The Ministry of Interior is conducting the handover process to restore full state authority over vital facilities
LONDON: Syrian authorities have taken over security responsibilities at Qamishli airport in Hasaka Province, northeastern Syrian Arab Republic, as part of the implementation of the agreement between Damascus and the Syrian Democratic Forces.
The Ministry of Interior, represented by the Directorate of Airport and Border Security, is conducting the handover process on Sunday to restore full state authority over vital facilities and enhance security procedures at airports and border crossings, according to the Syrian Arab News Agency.
Qamishli airport has been out of service for the past 15 years and was the only major airport under SDF control.
In January, the Syrian army entered Hasakah and deployed throughout the Jazira region to secure it under an agreement between the Syrian government and the SDF.
Under the agreement, both the Syrian government and the SDF agreed to a ceasefire and a phased integration of military and administrative structures. It also includes deploying government security forces and transferring control of civil institutions and border areas to the state, the SANA added.
