Clipmarks | abailart's 'pkk' clips

Turkish Troops Enter Iraqi Kurdistan

Tue, 18 Dec 2007 10:41:30 GMT

clipped by: abailart

About 300 Turkish troops have crossed into northern Iraq, officials in Iraq have said.

The lightly-armed soldiers entered Iraq overnight and moved up to three kilometres (1.9 miles) inside, an Iraqi Kurdish spokesman said.

So far Ankara has not confirmed the reports.

It is believed to be the first major Turkish deployment of troops in Iraq since the Cabinet backed the move last month, in a bid to hunt Kurdish rebels.

The Turkish army blames rebels from the Kurdistan's Workers' Party (PKK) of using bases inside Iraq to launch attacks on Turkey.

The deployment came just two days after Turkey sent up to 50 planes to attack PKK bases inside northern Iraq, in what was seen as an escalation of weeks of cross-border tensions

Ankara has massed up to 100,000 troops near the mountainous border with northern Iraq, backed by tanks, artillery and warplanes.

But Iraq and the US have urged Turkey not to carry out its threat.

Tags: kurdistan, iraq, turkey

Tehran Calls Iranian Kurds "Terrorists"

Fri, 14 Dec 2007 06:59:10 GMT

clipped by: merrie
clipper's remarks: In an exclusive interview with Newsmax recently in Berlin, Ahmadi says that Iran was now working hand-in-glove with Turkey to get PJAK labeled as a terrorist organization.

“Iran knows they can’t make trouble for us directly because they have such bad relations with Europe. That’s why they are going through Turkey.”

The Iranian regime has been telling journalists and diplomats that PJAK and the PKK (the Kurdistan Workers Party) are the same. “But we are an Iranian party, and have nothing to do with Turkey,” he says.

PJAK has become a serious threat to the regime in Tehran because it is fighting to overthrow the clerical regime in favor of a secular republic and because it favors equality between men and women, Ahmadi asserts. The group has around 2,500 armed guerilla fighters, 40 percent of whom are women.

Clip Source: www.newsmax.com

Unable to defeat rebel Kurds in their mountain strongholds in Northern Iraq, the Iranian regime has launched a campaign of terror against its own Kurdish citizens in an effort to paint regime opponents as terrorists.

“The regime is planning to blame this attack on PJAK, even though their own agents carried it out,” a well-placed Iranian source tells Newsmax. “They did the same thing in Sistan-va-Balouchestan province earlier this year, then went to [neighboring] Pakistan demanding the extradition of Balouchi activists.”

A PJAK liaison representative in Washington, D.C. denied that the group had any involvement in the Sanandaj explosion, calling the allegations “an Iranian fabrication.”

“PJAK does not carry out operations against civilians,” Saif Badrakhan tells Newsmax. “Iran is behind this kind of operation to terrorize the Kurdish population.”

PJAK President Rahman Haj-Ahmadi, the prime target of the Iranian regime effort, has lived in Germany for the past 35 years

Tags: iranian kurds, pjak, tehran, turkey, europe, terrorists

Us in Covert War on Iraq-Iran Border

Fri, 30 Nov 2007 17:34:51 GMT

clipped by: abailart

Clip Source: www.atimes.com

While the PKK has been in the international spotlight in recent weeks, with Turkey mounting cross-border raids and threatening to launch an invasion of Iraq, not so much attention has been given to the Iranian offshoot, the PJAK. The group has been waging an insurgency against Tehran since 2004, which recently has escalated. A guerrilla leader told the New York Times last month that PJAK fighters had killed at least 150 Iranian soldiers and officials in Iran since August.

Iran accuses Washington of backing the group, and while the US denies this, local and foreign intelligence sources say the accusation is most likely true. According to a former US Special Forces (SF) commando currently based in Iraq who spoke on condition of anonymity, Special Forces troops are currently operating inside Iran, working with insurgent forces like the PJAK. "That's what the SF does," he said. "They train and build up indigenous anti-government forces."

Tags: iran, iraq, us trained militia, kurdistan

Turkey Authorises Iraq Strike

Fri, 30 Nov 2007 17:26:11 GMT

clipped by: abailart

Clip Source: english.aljazeera.net

The Turkish government has authorised the army to carry out strikes against separatist Kurdish fighters in northern Iraq.

Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Turkey's prime minister, said: "We made a decision at the cabinet meeting on November 28 and, with the president's approval, the Turkish armed forces were authorised regarding a cross-border operation."

Faced with mounting violence, the government secured parliamentary approval last month to order a cross-border military operation against the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK).

Answering journalists' questions on television, Erdogan did not give any indication whether such action was imminent.

Tags: turkey, iraq, kurdistan, pkk, us=iraqi+turkish diplomacy

Turkish Police Break Up Kurdish Rally

Sun, 18 Nov 2007 09:00:53 GMT

clipped by: abailart

Clip Source: english.aljazeera.net

Ten people have been arrested as Turkish police used warning shots and tear gas to break up a rally by a Kurdish party that authorities are trying to ban.

Police broke up demonstrators chanting slogans in favour of Abdullah Ocalan, the jailed leader of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), Turkey's NTV news channel reported.

As many as 2,000 demonstrators loyal to Ocalan rallied in the city of Van on Saturday.

The demonstration was organised by the country's main Kurdish political movement, the Democratic Society Party (DTP) – a group accused by Ankara of colluding with PKK fighters.

The DTP, which holds 20 seats in Turkey's 550-member parliament, rejects charges of links to the PKK.

Tags: kurds, pkk, dtp, turkey

Turkey Claims Iraq Border Tension Easing

Thu, 15 Nov 2007 08:34:37 GMT

clipped by: abailart

Clip Source: english.aljazeera.net

Iraq's president says the prospect of a Turkish "invasion" of his country is fading.

A week after meeting with his US and Turkish counterparts, Jalal Talabani said cross-border tensions were easing.

But Al Jazeera's Mike Hanna found the picture on the streets of Istanbul quite different and Turkey continued to mass troops along the border.

Despite the Ankara government appearing to have succeeded in calming the emotions that were running high in recent weeks, the Turkish public continues to thirst for revenge and expect a mass military deployment into northern Iraq, he said.

Erdogan denied there had been cross-border attacks but said Turkey was ready to strike [EPA]

Tags: turkey, pkk, iraq, kurdistan

Internet Myth: Blood Kurdling

Thu, 15 Nov 2007 08:31:07 GMT

clipped by: abailart

Clip Source: www.atimes.com

well known Turkish clothing firm LC Waikiki (LCW). For about two weeks the Internet has been awash with unfounded rumors that LCW has been sold

to Leyla Zana, the first Kurdish woman to take a seat in the Turkish Parliament. The result of the cyber-gossip has been a fourfold increase in visits to the LCW website; the number of visitors spiraled from 60,000 a month to 280,000 in five days. On the face of it that sounds like good news, but not if it is coupled with a 15% drop in sales revenue.

in 1991 when she took her oath as an MP by starting it in Turkish but finishing it in Kurdish.

she recently referred to the incarcerated head of the PKK, Abdullah Ocalan, as a "leader"

proposal to reorganize Turkey into a set of federal states, one of them being Kurdistan

According to the electronic whispering campaign, Zana now owns LCW and the money made from its products is being directed to the PKK.

In fact the company is at a loss to know how the rumors came about

Tags: kuristan, turkey, internet myths

PKK Kills Four Turkish Soldiers

Tue, 13 Nov 2007 20:18:10 GMT

clipped by: abailart

Clip Source: english.aljazeera.net

Four Turkish soldiers have been killed and two injured in clashes with Kurdish fighters in the southeast of the country, the Turkish army has said.

A lieutenant and three privates died on Tuesday while battling Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) fighters on Mount Kupeli, Sirnak province, the statement said. It gave no figure on PKK losses.

Local security sources had earlier reported that the clashes occurred on Mount Gabar, which is close to Kupeli.

The soldiers were the first casualties of the conflict on Turkish territory since November 7 when troops killed three PKK separatist fighters.

Tags: pkk, turkey

PKK Child Fighter Lays Down Arms

Sat, 10 Nov 2007 09:22:11 GMT

clipped by: abailart
clipper's remarks: A good interview/article. One of those that give more insight than a million facts and stats.

Clip Source: www.timesonline.co.uk

With her Kalashnikov folded in half to stop it dragging on the ground and ammunition strapped around her tiny waist, Zerya was 12 when she became a Kurdish fighter in the Turkish mountains after running away from home.

Sixteen years later her body bears the scars of countless battles with Turkish soldiers and her eyes are haunted by the memories of friends she has lost. No longer a guerrilla for the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), she is trying to fit back into society, using a mobile phone for the first time and discovering treats such as ice cream and pizza that she never had in the mountains.

Instead of studying, gossiping about boys and listening to pop music, Zerya spent her teenage years fighting Turkish soldiers, living off scraps of food and sleeping wherever she found shelter.

taught her that the problem can be solved only by agreement between both sides

The PKK offered a new way for both sides to step away from confrontation yesterday.

Tags: pkk, turkey, kurdistan, kurdish struggle, mideast, iraq

PKK: We Want Peaceful Settlement with Turkey

Mon, 05 Nov 2007 09:08:21 GMT

clipped by: abailart

Clip Source: www.timesonline.co.uk

President Bush will hold crisis talks today in Washington where he hopes to stave off the prospect of a new and perilous front of fighting in Iraq.

Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the Turkish Prime Minister, has delayed a final decision on whether to take military action against Kurdish rebels across the border with Iraq until he hears what Mr Bush has to say in their talks today.

The much-anticipated meeting comes as eight Turkish soldiers, captured by the PKK a fortnight ago, were enjoying their first full day of freedom after being released by their captors.

The PKK was also keen to make the most of the moment, noting that the “prisoners of war” had been well treated and released without conditions. “This is the proof that we do not want war, we want to solve the problem peacefully through dialogue,” said Abdul Rahman Chaderchi, a spokesman.

Tags: pkk, turkey, iraq, kurdistan

Turkish Invasion Halts for Winter?

Sun, 04 Nov 2007 09:43:58 GMT

clipped by: abailart

Clip Source: www.atimes.com

As Turkish troops mass along the border with Kurdish northern Iraq, chief of the Turkish General Staff General Yasar Buyukanit has promised to make the rebels of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) "grieve with an intensity they cannot imagine".

While an attack on northern Iraq seems imminent, important questions are being raised in Ankara about the effectiveness of a cross-border operation.

The difficulty for Ankara is that a quick raid on PKK installations in Iraq is likely to have little long-term effect.

The onset of winter usually marks the end of the PKK's campaigning season until spring,

Economic sanctions and border closures present an alternative

cutting supplies of electricity to northern Iraq, and the evacuation of Turkish contractors responsible for most of the rebuilding and infrastructure creation in northern Iraq. Over 600 Turkish construction firms are currently at work in northern Iraq.

Tags: pkk, turkey, iraq

KPP Release Turkish Soldiers

Sun, 04 Nov 2007 09:14:23 GMT

clipped by: abailart

Clip Source: www.jpost.com

Kurdish rebels on Sunday released eight Turkish soldiers in northern Iraq two weeks after capturing them in an ambush inside Turkey, private NTV television reported, citing Iraqi Kurdish officials.

A Turkish soldier holds his machine gun as he patrols the area near the Turkey-Iraq border, atop of an armored vehicle, in the province of Sirnak.
Photo: AP

The release of the soldiers, however, was not expected to affect Turkish plans. Turkey's military and civilian leadership have repeatedly stressed their determination to stage an incursion if the US or Iraq do not crack down on rebel hideouts in northern Iraq.

The US is pressing hard to keep Turkey from staging a cross-border offensive against the rebels of the Kurdistan Workers' Party, or PKK, in remote mountains of northern Iraq. The US designates the PKK as an international terrorist organization.

Tags: kpp, kurdistan, turkey, iraq

Will the U.S. let Turkey go it alone against PKK or join assault on rebels?

Fri, 02 Nov 2007 17:54:45 GMT

clipped by: BobbyRutan
clipper's remarks: More: With 100,000 Turkish troops now said to be massed on the border with Iraq, Turkish officials and experts anticipate an operation against Kurds in as little as a week

Some see this as a choice between keeping Turkey as an ally and appeasing northern Iraq," said Faruk Logoglu, a longtime foreign policy adviser and currently the president of the Center for Eurasian Strategic Studies. "It's more than that. The U.S. is now choosing between a united and divided Iraq

A German Marshall Fund poll found that only 7 percent of Turks now think that the U.S. should play a strong role in international affairs and only 2 percent approve of U.S. foreign policy. The U.S. used to be very popular in Turkey.

Standing in a street plastered with Turkish flags, Cengiz Atalay, 30, of Ankara said: "We are ready for war."

Across town, student Samet Meydan, 21, noted, "What's now clear is that the United States is no longer a friend to Turkey."

Erdogan said this week, "Americans should be w

Clip Source: www.mcclatchydc.com

With public pressure building for a military intervention against Kurdish guerrillas in northern Iraq, the United States and Turkey are to begin four days of crisis talks Friday that will help to define America's relationship with Turkey and possibly the future of Iraq as well

Bush's former envoy on the issue told McClatchy Newspapers to put the blame on the administration. He said its failure to keep its promises to Turkey was forcing that country to intervene in Iraq to subdue the Kurdistan Workers Party — the PKK in its Kurdish initials — which the U.S. considers a terrorist organization

The PKK, based in the Kurdish region of northern Iraq, had run a separatist insurgency against Turkey for 20 years at a cost of an estimated 35,000 lives, but it began a cease-fire in 1999. After the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq in 2003, when Kurdish leaders took political control of their region, PKK fighters began operations against soldiers and civilians in Turkey

Tags: mission accomplished, bush, the master of disaster

Us Double-Crossing Over Kurdistan

Thu, 01 Nov 2007 13:14:44 GMT

clipped by: abailart

Clip Source: www.atimes.com

The George W Bush administration would not flinch to betray its allies in Iraqi Kurdistan if that entailed a US "win" in the Iraq quagmire. And it would not flinch to leave its Turkish North Atlantic Treaty Organization allies in the wilderness as well - if that entailed further destabilization of Iran. Way beyond the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) vs Turkey skirmish, one of these

two double-crossing scenarios will inevitably take place. Washington simply cannot have its kebab and eat it too.

The US and Israeli establishment regards Hezbollah as a group of evil super-terrorists. But the PKK consists of just "minor" terrorists, and very useful ones at that, since the US Central Intelligence Agency is covertly financing and arming the PJAK (Party for Free Life in Kurdistan), the Iranian arm of the PKK, whose mission is to "liberate" parts of northwest Iran.

Not accidentally, the new PKK overdrive coincides with US - and also Israeli - covert support for the PJAK.

Tags: kurdistan, israel, pkk, iraqi kurdistan, iarnian kurdistan, pjak

100,000 Turkish Troops Ready to Invade

Tue, 30 Oct 2007 10:05:02 GMT

clipped by: abailart

Clip Source: www.atimes.com

With more than 100,000 troops and all those F-16s, tanks and helicopter gunships massed on the Turkish-Iraqi border, the new George W Bush greater Middle East war - that is, the Turkish invasion of Iraqi Kurdistan - is ready to roll.

To say this is all part of a "structural crisis" between Turkey and the US would be the understatement of the century. Turkey is actually deciding nothing less than its real geopolitical position in a mesmerizing balancing act involving Iran, Israel, the Arab world, Europe, Russia and the US.

Iraqi Kurds definitely will not betray their cousins, the Turkish Kurds - although they did so, for instance, in 1992, when they collaborated with the Turkish military in an anti-PKK joint offensive.

This mini-war transcends the PKK. Ankara's ultimate nightmare is an independent Kurdish state in northern Iraq, a virtual certainty after the incorporation of oil-rich Kirkuk

"vision" in fact presupposes the partition of Iraq.

"We have no friends other than the mountains."

Tags: turkey, kurdistan, iraq, geopolitics