Friday, August 10, 2007
PKK calls for Maliki to renege on agreement with Turkey
Regional
(Al Jazeera) - Mizkin Amad, a deputy political officer of the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), has called on Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki to renege on an agreement reached with Turkey earlier this week to crack down on PKK fighters hiding in northern Iraq, Al-Jazeera television reported on August 8. "Turkey continues to deny the Kurdish people's rights and tries to involve international powers in its conspiracies against us. Nonetheless, it has not succeeded in breaking our will or our movement," Amad contended.
She added that Turkey "wants to drag neighboring countries into its hostile activities toward the Kurdish people." Amad called on the Iraqi government "to not get caught up in Turkish policies targeting [the PKK]...and withdraw from this agreement and avoid being the cause of a war between the people of the region." Iraq's Kurdistan regional government has not made any public statements regarding the Iraqi-Turkish agreement.
Labels: Kurdistan Workers Party, Mizkin Amad, Nouri Al-Maliki, PKK, Turkey
Tuesday, April 17, 2007
PKK warns Turkey to hold talks or rebels will break cease fire
Security, Turkey
(AP) - A Kurdish rebel commander warned Turkey Monday that if it does not negotiate with the Kurdistan Workers Party, or PKK, the group will stop abiding by a cease fire it declared unilaterally and resume cross-border attacks. Haval Jangawer, a PKK commander speaking by telephone from Qandil Mountains on the border with Turkey, said Iraq's northern neighbor has massed about 60 tanks, artillery pieces and thousands of soldiers near the border with Iraq.
His comments came amid fighting between Turkish troops and PKK fighters, as well as increasing tensions between Turkey and Iraq's Kurds who recently warned their northern neighbor not to interfere in Iraq's affairs or face retaliation from the PKK. Last week, Turkish chief of the armed forces Gen. Yasar Buyukanit said "an operation into Iraq is necessary." He said the military was conducting several "large scale" offensives against separatist Kurdish rebels in the predominantly Kurdish southeastern region. The announcement comes as Turkey has been intensifying pressure on Iraq and the United States to crack down on the rebels who launch raids from bases in northern Iraq.
Turkish troops were not expected to cross the border, although they did on several occasions before the 2003 U.S. invasion of Iraq. Jangawer said Turkey "will either have to accept our unilateral cease-fire and solve the Kurdish problem through negotiations or we will start fighting again." PKK fighters have held a cease-fire since Oct.1, but the Turkey military has ignored it, vowing to continue fighting until all rebels are killed or surrender.
Labels: Gen. Yasar Buyukanit, Haval Jangawer, Kurdistan, Kurdistan Workers Party, PKK, Turkey
Friday, April 13, 2007
Turkish general pushes for approval for northern Iraq incursion
Security, Turkey
(AP) - Turkey's military, which began staging several "large-scale" attacks on separatist Kurdish rebels in the country's southeast, asked the government Thursday for approval to launch a cross-border incursion into northern Iraq. "An operation into Iraq is necessary," Gen. Yasar Buyukanit said, pushing for permission to raid northern Iraq to fight Kurdish guerrillas despite strong opposition from the United States and Iraq against such unilateral action.
The call raises the pressure on Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan to take a harder line against Kurdish guerrillas and against the Kurdish leadership in northern Iraq, where the rebels are based and train. Buyukanit said the military already was moving against separatists in Turkey's predominantly Kurdish southeastern region bordering Iraq.
"There are several large-scale operations under way in several areas," Buyukanit told reporters. "Our aim is to prevent them from taking positions in the region with the coming of spring." He said the rebels generally intensify their attacks on Turkey as the snow melts, opening up mountain passes. Clashes already have killed 10 soldiers and 29 Kurdish guerrillas in recent fighting, Buyukanit said. The separatist conflict has left more than 37,000 people dead since 1984.
On Monday, the Turkish government demanded that U.S. and Iraqi officials crack down on guerrillas from the Kurdistan Workers Party, or PKK, running their rebellion from hideouts in the predominantly Kurdish region of northern Iraq. "The PKK has huge freedom of movement in Iraq," Buyukanit said. "It has spread its roots in Iraq."
But Iraq's government is barely able to control its own cities. U.S. commanders, who are battling the Iraqi insurgency in the middle of the country, are stretched too thin to take on Turkish Kurds hiding in remote mountains near the frontier. Washington repeatedly has cautioned Turkey against staging a cross-border offensive, fearing that it could destabilize the region and antagonize Iraqi Kurds, who are allied with the U.S. However, Turkey has asserted its right to stage a cross-border offensive if Iraqi officials fail to clamp down on the guerrillas.
The call raises the pressure on Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan to take a harder line against Kurdish guerrillas and against the Kurdish leadership in northern Iraq, where the rebels are based and train. Buyukanit said the military already was moving against separatists in Turkey's predominantly Kurdish southeastern region bordering Iraq.
"There are several large-scale operations under way in several areas," Buyukanit told reporters. "Our aim is to prevent them from taking positions in the region with the coming of spring." He said the rebels generally intensify their attacks on Turkey as the snow melts, opening up mountain passes. Clashes already have killed 10 soldiers and 29 Kurdish guerrillas in recent fighting, Buyukanit said. The separatist conflict has left more than 37,000 people dead since 1984.
On Monday, the Turkish government demanded that U.S. and Iraqi officials crack down on guerrillas from the Kurdistan Workers Party, or PKK, running their rebellion from hideouts in the predominantly Kurdish region of northern Iraq. "The PKK has huge freedom of movement in Iraq," Buyukanit said. "It has spread its roots in Iraq."
But Iraq's government is barely able to control its own cities. U.S. commanders, who are battling the Iraqi insurgency in the middle of the country, are stretched too thin to take on Turkish Kurds hiding in remote mountains near the frontier. Washington repeatedly has cautioned Turkey against staging a cross-border offensive, fearing that it could destabilize the region and antagonize Iraqi Kurds, who are allied with the U.S. However, Turkey has asserted its right to stage a cross-border offensive if Iraqi officials fail to clamp down on the guerrillas.
Labels: Gen. Yasar Buyukanit, Kurdistan, Kurdistan Workers Party, PKK, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Turkey
Friday, March 16, 2007
PKK open to negotiation with Turkey
Politics, Security, Kurdistan
(AP) - Kurdish rebels say they have enough weapons to defend themselves against Turkish raids on their bases in northern Iraq but remain open to a political settlement with Turkey that recognizes Kurdish national identity. Turkey is pressing Iraq and its American ally to crack down on
rebels of the Kurdistan Workers Party, or PKK, who launch attacks on Turkey from bases in northern Iraq. During an interview last week with the a PKK mountain stronghold, a spokesman for the PKK insisted that the rebels have the weapons to resist any Turkish incursion. Rustam Jawdat said that the PKK was open to a deal - but on its terms. "We want to solve the problem with Turkey peacefully. We have simple weapons. If we have guarantees to recognize Kurdish national identity, we would not need to carry weapons," he said. The interview occurred in a PKK base in the rugged mountains of northern Iraq. Access to the camp was on foot, and the fighters would not allow photographs of the area for security.
Jawdat indicated the rebels are more confident now because they believed Kurdish politicians would put pressure on the United States, and by extension Turkey, to avoid any armed incursion.
On Thursday, Retired U.S. Air Force Gen. Joseph Ralston, said in Washington that the U.S. is addressing Turkish complaints about PKK activity. "As the snows melt in the mountain passes along the Turkish-Iraqi border in several weeks, we will see if the PKK renews its attacks and how the Turkish government chooses to respond," Ralston said.
Jawdat said the PKK was willing to work with the Americans and Europeans to resolve the conflict with Turkey. "America and the European Union should know that we will not give up our weapons as long as (the Turks) do not accept our rights and do not recognize our national identity," Jawdat said. "It is impossible to get the right of self-determination in the Middle East without using armed struggle."
Jawdat indicated the rebels are more confident now because they believed Kurdish politicians would put pressure on the United States, and by extension Turkey, to avoid any armed incursion.
On Thursday, Retired U.S. Air Force Gen. Joseph Ralston, said in Washington that the U.S. is addressing Turkish complaints about PKK activity. "As the snows melt in the mountain passes along the Turkish-Iraqi border in several weeks, we will see if the PKK renews its attacks and how the Turkish government chooses to respond," Ralston said.
Jawdat said the PKK was willing to work with the Americans and Europeans to resolve the conflict with Turkey. "America and the European Union should know that we will not give up our weapons as long as (the Turks) do not accept our rights and do not recognize our national identity," Jawdat said. "It is impossible to get the right of self-determination in the Middle East without using armed struggle."
Labels: Gen. Joseph Ralston, Kurdistan Workers Party, PKK, Rustam Jawdat, Turkey
