Left MP Ferat Koçak under fire for contacts with Remmo family amid controversy over “clan crime” terminology

Bundestag deputy Ferat Koçak said he did not know the background of Firas Remmo when a private Instagram exchange between them became public, and he apologized for the contact. He announced that he would pause his work on the interior committee while the matter is reviewed. Green parliamentary manager Irene Mihalic said that stepping back from the committee does not address concerns about his access to classified information and called for further action.

CDU interior spokesman Alexander Throm said Koçak should be removed from the interior committee, arguing that respect for clan leaders disqualifies him from handling security data. Party leaders Sören Pellmann and Heidi Reichinnek said they will accept Koçak’s account unless contrary evidence emerges, while activist collective Links*Kanax posted an Instagram appeal denouncing what they called a double standard.