Stay up to date with notifications from The Independent

Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.

German Motorcycle Club members join Dutch bikers in fight against Isis

Members of the Median Empire Motorcycle Club are in Kobani and fighting with the Kurds

Loulla-Mae Eleftheriou-Smith
Monday 20 October 2014 08:55 BST
Comments
German bikers have travelled to Syria to join the Kurds in the fight against Isis
German bikers have travelled to Syria to join the Kurds in the fight against Isis

A group of German bikers have followed in the footsteps of a Dutch Motorcycle Club and joined in the fight against Isis in Syria.

Members of the Cologne-based Median Empire Motorcycle Club, who reportedly have strong Kurdish links, have joined Kurdish militia in the fight against Isis (also known as Islamic State), with images and messages posted on Facebook reporting their progress.

The Facebook profile for “AZAD 1%ER,” who claims to be the founder and national president of the German biker club, has been posting images of his “brothers” in Syria, wearing Median Empire branded t-shirts and carrying guns.

One post shows two men climbing a hill in Syria in their motorcycle get-up with guns slung over their shoulders, with the message: “Our boys were in Kobani today and told me they were shot at but nothing happened. They are okay,” and promising to keep followers up to date.

Another post shows a fighter in a camouflage shirt sat on a hill and aiming a gun, identifying the person as the vice president and “brother” of the biker group, posing in defence of ‘Shengal’, also known as the town of Sinjar, home to the Yazidi Kurds in Iraq.

Three bikers from the Dutch No Surrender Banditos Club are understood to have travelled to Mosul, Iraq, to join forces with the Kurds. A photo on a Kurdish-Dutch Twitter account showed a man identified as ‘Ron’ holding a Kalashnikov and standing with his arm around a Kurdish fighter.

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in