2 Brits charged in Turkey for PKK/PYD ties

Two British citizens have been sued for making terrorist PKK/PYD propaganda from their social media accounts while in Turkey, authorities said Friday.

An indictment released by the public prosecutor of Aydin requested Joseph R. and his girlfriend, Mira A. serve multiyear sentences for the propaganda and for "being a member of a terrorist organization."

The couple was arrested June 27 during an anti-terror operation in Aydin's Didim district.

The seven-page indictment was accepted by Aydin's Third Heavy Penal Court.

Joseph R. confessed he was in PKK/PYD fronts of the Sarin and Ain al Arab regions in Syria, where he was directed to locations by the group's members he previously met.

He also confessed to being trained how to use AK-47 and other machine guns.

Prosecutors are seeking five to 10 years for Joseph R. and three to five years for Mira A.

More than 1,200 people, including security force personnel and civilians, have lost their lives since the PKK -- listed as a terrorist organization by Turkey, the U.S., and EU -- resumed its decades-old armed campaign in July 2015.

The PYD is the Syrian affiliate of the PKK, which has been branded a terror group by Turkey, the EU and the U.S. Yet despite its known association with terrorism, Washington views the PYD as a viable ally against the Daesh terror group in Syria.