Security measures were stepped up inside the building after four demonstrators entered the premises. All access to UN territory was closed by UN security forces as well as the Swiss police. First floor windows have been sealed with metal shutters and the main entrance gates were also closed, with even UN staff barred from entering or leaving.
Demonstrators said that four men had broken into the building earlier in the day, intending to talk with UN officials.
Meanwhile, a UN office representative told RIA Novosti that there were five trespassers, all of whom were detained by UN security personnel after a brief struggle. They were not armed and have now been handed over to the Swiss police.
The rally was assembled to demand the freedom of Abdullah Ocalan, one of the PKK`s founders who has been imprisoned by Turkish authorities since 1999. Ocalan`s supporters also demanded Turkish authorities to disclose information about the Kurdish rebel leader, as nothing has been heard of his condition since the attempted military coup on July 15.
Tensions between Ankara and the Kurds escalated in July 2015 when a ceasefire between Turkey and the PKK collapsed over a series of terror attacks allegedly committed by the PKK members. The Kurds are currently living in parts of Turkey, Iran, Iraq and Syria. In Turkey, the Kurds represent the largest ethnic minority, and are striving to create their own independent state.
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