DAMASCUS, Oct 16 (AFP) - 18h18 - Syria's state security court on Sunday sentenced two Kurds each to two-and-a-half years in prison for belonging to a "secret organisation", their lawyer Faisal Badr said.The men, Idris Mohammed Mohammed and Mustapha Said Khalaf, are members of Syria's Kurdish banned Democratic Union Party and were found guilty of belonging "to a secret organisation aiming to have part of Syrian territory annexed by a foreign country", said Badr.

"This is the habitual charge made against all Kurds who appear in this tribunal. It is unfounded because all Kurdish parties seek a democratic and just solution to the Kurdish problems within the framework of Syria's territorial unity," he added.

Around 1.5 million Kurds live in Syria out of the total population of around 17 million people. Kurdish leaders reject charges of secessionist aims and say they want only their political rights and recognition of their language and culture.