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Turkey adds extra 30,000 troops to Kurdish area
27.4.2006
By SELCAN HACAOGLU
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ANKARA, Turkey,
April 27, 2006, -- Turkey has deployed more than
30,000 additional troops in its predominantly
Kurdish southeast and along its rugged border with
Iraq and Iran to fight Kurdish guerrillas and stop
them from coming across the frontier, officials said
Thursday.
Kurdish rebels killed two Turkish soldiers and
injured a third in a grenade attack Wednesday on a
military outpost, the Anatolia news agency reported,
raising the number of Turkish troops killed this
year to at least 17. More than 40 Kurdish guerrillas
have also been killed in the same period in a series
of clashes.
The Turkish deployment, which has been going on for
several weeks, boosts an already large garrison in
the region that by some estimates tops 250,000
soldiers. |
Photo: dozame.org |
Guerrillas of the Kurdistan Workers Party, or PKK,
have bases in northern Iraq but also have
substantial forces in the mountains of southeastern
Turkey. They typically step up their attacks in the
spring, when winter snow melts, clearing mountain
passes in the region. Turkey often increases its
military activities in response.
"(The deployment) is only aimed to prevent
infiltrations of the terrorist organization into
Turkey," Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul said. Turkey
regards the PKK as a terrorist organization.
Iran also reportedly has moved forces to the border,
and last week shelled a mountainous region inside
Iraq used by anti-Iranian Kurdish fighters believed
to be linked to the PKK.
Iraqi President Jalal Talabani, who is Kurdish, has
expressed concern over reported Iranian and Turkish
troop concentrations on the borders.
Gul said that since Iraq doesn't "have the
capability to fight terrorism, they should be
pleased with the measures we have taken and they
should help us."
Turkish soldiers have been pursuing Kurdish
guerrillas across the border into Iraq, penetrating
up to six miles, according to a local official who
spoke on condition of anonymity because he is not
authorized to talk to the media.
Turkey already has an estimated 2,000 soldiers
stationed inside Iraq and limited incursions inside
of Iraq in pursuit of rebels have not been uncommon
in the past.
The PKK took up arms against the Turkish government
in 1984. The fighting has so far claimed more than
37,000 lives.
AP
Southeast Turkey: Northern Kurdistan (
Kurdistan-Turkey).
Northern Iraq : South Kurdistan (Kurdistan-Iraq)
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