Monday, April 23, 2007
Turkish forces kill 18 PKK militants
Security, Kurdistan, Turkey
(Xinhua) -- Turkish military announced in a statement on Saturday that it killed 18 militants of the outlawed Kurdish Workers' Party (PKK) and captured six others in last week's operations against the PKK. The statement released by The Turkish General Staff said that seven PKK members also surrendered to the Turkish security forces in the region.
The operations staged by the Turkish security forces in fight against the PKK have been continuing in eastern and southeastern Turkey since beginning of this spring. On April 12, Turkey's Chief of General Staff Gen. Yasar Buyukanit even said a military operation might be launched to crack down on the PKK in northern Iraq.
PKK, listed as a terrorist organization by the United States, NATO and the European Union, launched an armed campaign for an ethnic homeland in the mainly Kurdish southeastern Turkey in 1984, sparking decades of strife that has claimed more than 30,000 lives.
The operations staged by the Turkish security forces in fight against the PKK have been continuing in eastern and southeastern Turkey since beginning of this spring. On April 12, Turkey's Chief of General Staff Gen. Yasar Buyukanit even said a military operation might be launched to crack down on the PKK in northern Iraq.
PKK, listed as a terrorist organization by the United States, NATO and the European Union, launched an armed campaign for an ethnic homeland in the mainly Kurdish southeastern Turkey in 1984, sparking decades of strife that has claimed more than 30,000 lives.
COMMENT: The Turkish, Kurdish and PKK issue has escalated over the last few months. The deaths of the PKK members is likely to lead to further attacks by the PKK on Turkey. Ankara says the PKK use bases in northern Iraq to launch attacks into southern Turkey. Turkey is growing angry over the failure of U.S. and Iraqi forces to curb the attacks. Any Turkish military incursion into northern Iraq would put the already over-stretched U.S. military in the middle of a fight between two crucial partners, and Washington has urged Turkish restraint. A U.S. official blamed Kurdish authorities in northern Iraq for raising tensions with neighboring Turkey recently. The U.S. is mediating in talks between the Iraqis and Turks over the feud. COMMENT ENDS.
Labels: Gen. Yasar Buyukanit, PKK, Turkish forces
