Deniz Naki Says He Survived Suspected Murder Attempt; Shots Fired at His Car

Amed SK footballer Denis Naki has said he survived an attempt on his life while driving in Germany on Sunday night.

Naki, who has been a well-known critic of the Turkish government in the past, said he was driving near Duren when bullets were fired at his vehicle from a different car.

"I immediately ducked and then rolled right to the hard shoulder," he told Die Welt (h/t BBC) "…One bullet struck a window, in the middle of my car, the other one hit near a tyre."

As noted by BBC, in April a judge issued Naki with a suspended 18-month jail sentence for "spreading terrorist propaganda" for the separatist Kurdistan Workers' Party, known as the PKK.

Naki was banned by the Turkish Football Federation for 12 matches in 2016 after he was deemed to have spread "ideological propaganda."

No evidence has surfaced linking the attempted murder with the Turkish state, nor has any responsibility been claimed. 

Naki said he assumed the Turkish MIT secret service had conducted the attack "or somebody else who doesn't like my politics."

Per DW Sports, Die Welt reporter Ibrahim Naber relayed images of the bullet holes in Naki's car on Twitter:

The PKK are regarded as a terrorist organisation by Turkey, the European Union and the United States. There has been conflict between the group and Turkish forces since 2015, when a ceasefire broke down.

Naki's time in youth football was spent in Germany, where he was on Bayer Leverkusen's books. He went on to have spells with St Pauli, SC Paderborn and Genclerbirligi before moving to his current club in 2015.