GENEVA 

Switzerland's Federal Court has upheld fines issued to four people for displaying a "Kill Erdogan" banner during a 2017 demonstration in Bern, making the Bernese Higher Court's ruling legally binding, media reports said Tuesday.

The individuals had been convicted of publicly inciting a crime and were ordered to pay fines of up to 3,600 Swiss francs (nearly $4,444), the SRF reported. In their appeal, the defendants argued that the offence of public incitement to commit a crime was not fulfilled.

But the Federal Court rejected the complaint, ruling that the law had been correctly applied.

The banner showed a portrait of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan with a handgun pointed at his head, with the words: "Kill Erdogan with his own weapons!"

The court said the image and wording could "only be understood as a clear and urgent call to kill the Turkish president." It added that incitement to commit a crime applies even if the act would take place abroad.

It stressed that while freedom of expression and assembly protect even shocking or unpopular views, the banner went beyond provocative political criticism.

The judges also found that the defendants were directly involved and could not be considered bystanders, according to the report. They had stood near the banner repeatedly, helped pull the handcart carrying it or operated a sound system on it.

The banner appeared during a rally in which sympathizers of the PKK, YPG, and DHKP-C terror groups participated.