Fehriye Erdal is a female member of the Turkish left-wing militant group Revolutionary People’s Liberation Party-Front (DHKP-C) , a group termed by the EU and US as a terrorist organization. Erdal was on trial in Belgium with 10 co-defendants for their involvement and association with the DHKP-C. Six of her co-defendants were charged with possession of illegal weapons and falsified documents; the others were acquitted. She had been convicted on February 28 to four years in a Belgian prison but managed to escape police custody with the assistance of the DHKP-C leader Musa Asoglu, who is now incarcerated for six years. Her escape?allegedly first via an Opel Kadett and then via a public local bus?has caused considerable discomfort and embarrassment for the security services from whom this high-profile terrorist escaped. Authorities, namely the anti-terror unit of the Brussels federal police (la S?ret? de l??tat: SE), continue their search for her and have issued an international arrest warrant. An office of the DHKP-C was raided for the second time on March 4, data was seized, and staff was questioned. Erdal had lived in a safe-house above the office that was under the surveillance of the SE for six years, although during some of that time the 24-hour surveillance cameras was experiencing “technical problems” (source).
As can be expected, opposition parties began to call for the resignation of Interior Minister Patrick Dewael and Justice Minister Laurette Onkelinx on March 6. Dewael had in 2004 put two Chechen Rebels under “preventative arrest,” and opposition leaders contend that he should have done so with Erdal as well, anticipating that she might attempt to escape. This raises a concern this analyst has long emphasized: women terrorists are equally?if not more?dangerous than their male counterparts, and security should accord them the same strictures and precautions to avoid flight or otherwise elusive tactics. According to Ayaan Hirsi Ali, “Women all over the world are seen as vulnerable, as less violent. And that can make anti-terror authorities less vigilant when it comes to women.? Further, women are typically viewed as the givers of life, not the takers, and are thus not thought of as capable of terrorism. While women might look gentile and fragile, they cannot be discounted as possible terrorists. Security officials cannot be distracted or presumptuous in their efforts to secure the public domain.
Erdal is wanted in Turkey for her involvement in the assassination of a Turkish businessman and two associates (Terrorist Incident forthcoming). However, she was in 1999 arrested in Belgium, which refused to extradite her to Turkey because the death penalty was applicable. Her escape has enraged Turkey. Prime Minister Abdullah Gul said: “We expect her to be found and handed over to Turkey.”
Erdal remains on the lam. Only Asoglu knows her whereabouts, and he refuses to speak on the issue. Turkey, in signing a European Convention protocol in January 2004, agreed to abolish the death penalty “in all circumstances” (source), which had been voted upon?at least during peacetimes?in the Turkish parliament in August 2002. The move brought Turkey a step closer to European Union membership. However, authorities believe that she is still in Belgium because extradition to Turkey from elsewhere might be more easily achieved.
Luckily, Erdal is unlikely to be planning subsequent attacks, as she seems to want to evade security forces for her past transgressions rather than plot subsequent attacks. To that, her presence is unlikely to affect US entities in country. Belgium has made her re-capture their “highest priority,” but their efforts, thus far, have been sadly lacking, and a ‘lessons learned’ briefing by the SE would be well advised to thwart anything resembling this debacle in the future.