Turkey attacks Kurdish rebels on Iraqi border
Pastor Dale Morgan
Turkey attacks Kurdish rebels on Iraqi border
· Warplanes seen setting off for refuge in mountains
· Campaign for military offensive intensifies
Volkan Sarisakal in Cizre
Thursday October 25, 2007
The Guardian
Turkish warplanes and helicopter gunships reportedly attacked Kurdish
rebel positions just inside the Turkish border with Iraq yesterday, as
Turkey's military stepped up operations.
Several F-16 warplanes loaded with bombs and attack helicopters took off
from an air base in the south-eastern city of Diyarbakir, according to
an AP cameraman. The warplanes and helicopter gunships bombed mountain
paths used by rebels to infiltrate from neighbouring Iraq, the Anatolia
news agency reported.
A government official said yesterday that Turkish helicopter gunships
penetrated Iraqi territory and troops shelled suspected Kurdish rebel
positions across the border in Iraq on Sunday. Helicopters chased
Kurdish rebels three miles into Iraqi territory but returned to their
bases in Turkey after a rebel ambush killed 12 soldiers near the border,
the official said.
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He also said Turkish artillery units shelled rebel positions as recently
as Tuesday night but did not say which areas were targeted.
Turkey, which has moved troops to the Iraq border, warned Iraq and
western allies on Tuesday that a large-scale incursion was imminent
unless the US-backed government in Baghdad takes action against the
rebels. The Turkish government said there would be no ceasefire with the
fighters, who want an independent region in Turkey's heavily Kurdish
south-east.
Civilian and military leaders discussed a possible cross-border
offensive - a move that Turkey's western allies are trying to prevent. A
statement by Turkey's national security council recommended the
government "take necessary economic measures against those groups
directly or indirectly supporting the separatist terrorist organisation
in the region".
Recent news reports by local media have said Turkey is pondering
economic actions against the self-ruling Kurdish administration in
Iraq's north, where rebels are based.
Foreign trade minister Kursad Tuzmen said yesterday that Turkey could
impose economic sanctions on northern Iraq to force Iraqi Kurds to
cooperate with Turkey. The region is heavily reliant on Turkish
electricity, investment and food.
Turkey's leaders face growing demands at home for an offensive in
northern Iraq, where the rebels of the Kurdistan Workers' Party - the
PKK - rest, train and get supplies in relative safety before returning
to Turkey. Turkey has long pressed Iraq to capture and extradite rebel
leaders.
Iraq's prime minister Nouri al-Maliki has ordered the closure of all
offices belonging to the PKK in Iraq and said they would not be allowed
to operate in Iraqi territory.
The US has urged anti-rebel measures from the government of Iraq's
Kurdish region.