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world news Diaranson 15 Juni 2022

Former Kurdish rebel has key role in Sweden’s NATO bid

STOCKHOLM (AP) — had, to stand up for what I
When Turkey’s president believe in.”
rails against “terrorists” Kakabaveh, who grew up in a
in the Swedish Parlia- poor Kurdish home in west-
ment, Amineh Kakabaveh ern Iran, says she was just 13
is convinced he is talking in the late 1980s when she
about her. joined peshmerga fighters
rebelling against the Islamic
The former Kurdish reb- regime of Ayatollah Ruhollah
el fighter turned Swedish Khomeini.
lawmaker has emerged as a In her parliamentary office in
central figure in the drama Stockholm, she showed pic-
surrounding Sweden and tures of her teenage self in the
Finland’s historic bid to join rugged mountains between
NATO. Turkey opposes Iran and Iraq, a Kalashnikov
NATO membership for the slung over her shoulder.
two Nordic countries, accus- The rebels fought against
ing them of harboring Kurd- the Iranian regime and that
ish militants. of Iraqi President Saddam
Kakabaveh, a strong advocate Hussein, who used chemical
for Kurdish self-determina- weapons against Kurdish vil-
tion in the Middle East and a lages.
fierce critic of Turkish Presi- Kakabaveh says many of her
dent Recep Tayyip Erdogan, comrades and some relatives
holds extraordinary leverage were killed. She breaks down
because the Swedish govern- ing Kurdish fighters in Syria. Kakabaveh’s backing allowed violence and oppression in tears as she recalls the con-
ment depends on her vote for Turkey says those fighters are Social Democratic leader against women and girls in trast between her life in Swe-
its one-seat majority in Par- closely linked to PKK, a do- Magdalena Andersson to be- immigrant communities and den and the hardship she left
liament. mestic Kurdish group that come Sweden’s first female how it will deal with Turkey’s behind. For years after she ar-
“He cannot decide over us,” Ankara and the West consider prime minister last year. In demands. The prime minis- rived in Sweden as a refugee
she says of Erdogan. “I stand a terrorist organization. return, the center-left Social ter’s office declined to com- in 1992, the whirr of helicop-
up for Sweden’s values and Meeting those demands Democrats agreed to deepen ment. ters made her instinctively
Sweden’s sovereignty.” would have been difficult cooperation with Kurdish au- The unusual situation has want to run for cover.
Despite a long history of for the Swedes and Finns in thorities in northern Syria. raised Kakabaveh’s political A socialist, Kakabaveh con-
non-alignment, Sweden and any case, but with Sweden’s The minority government profile in Sweden and inter- tinued her political activism
Finland rushed to apply for government dependent on survived a no-confidence nationally. It has also exposed in Sweden, joining the Left
NATO membership after Kavikabeh’s support for its vote last week thanks to Kak- her to criticism that she is Party and campaigning for
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine survival, there is little room abaveh and will need her holding Sweden’s NATO gender equality in immigrant
but were stunned by opposi- to negotiate a compromise. support again on Wednesday bid hostage to advance her communities. Her activism
tion from Erdogan. “We are not used to single to push its spring budget pro- own agenda. Kakabaveh says against “honor culture” soon
To allow the Nordic coun- members of Parliament hav- posal through Parliament. she has received threats from put her at odds with party
tries into NATO, a deci- ing such influence,” says Kakabaveh, an independent both Turkish nationalists and colleagues who worried her
sion that requires unanimity Svante Cornell, director of lawmaker, says she has not Sweden’s far-right fringe. work stigmatized Muslims.
among the alliance’s mem- the Institute for Security yet decided how to vote and “It is a terrible situation,” says After years of tension, she left
bers, Turkey demanded they and Development Policy in is waiting for the government Kakabaveh, 48. “But I don’t the party in 2019 and since
lift arms embargoes on Tur- Stockholm. “It’s maximal bad to show its plans on issues want to sit in a corner and say, then serves as an indepen-
key, extradite alleged Kurdish luck for the government’s close to her heart, including ‘I’m scared.’ I left my family, dent lawmaker in the 349-
terrorists and stop support- side, you could say.” efforts to fight honor-based my childhood, everything I seat Parliament.

‘Everywhere. Everything. Everyone’: Drugs are back in the EU

BRUSSELS (AP) — Drug sage that stands out from Everyone,’” said the agency of that population, are esti- The agency said cannabis
trafficking and use across our analysis of drug trends director, Alexis Goosdeel. mated to have ever used an remains the most popular
the European Union are in 2022 can be summarized About 83.4 million people illicit drug, with more men substance, with over 22 mil-
returning to pre-pandem- as ‘Everywhere. Everything. aged 15-64 in the EU, or 29% than women reporting use. lion people reporting its use
ic levels, according to the in 2021, ahead of cocaine,
latest report published by MDMA and amphetamines.
the bloc’s drug agency on Some 1 million Europeans
Tuesday. used heroin or another illicit
opioid. An estimated 5,800
As COVID-19 restrictions overdose deaths occurred in
and increased border con- the EU in 2020, the most re-
trols have been relaxed on cent year for which that fig-
the continent, the EMCDDA ure was provided.
said drugs are available in The report pointed to an in-
large quantities in the region, creased use of social media
and in some cases above pre- applications and encrypted
pandemic levels. messaging services to get ac-
Hundreds of drug produc- cess to products during the
tion laboratories are being pandemic, a model that is
dismantled, and new psycho- likely to persist.
active substances are appear- The agency said last month
ing in the bloc every week. In that record amounts of co-
2021, 52 new drugs were re- caine are being seized in Eu-
ported for the first time, the rope while manufacturing of
agency said. the drug is now taking place
“For me, the take-home mes- inside the the EU.