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U.S. calls on Turkey, Iraq to work
together against Kurdish PKK rebels
14.11.2007
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November 14, 2007
WASHINGTON, -- The United States said Tuesday
that the killing of
four Turkish soldiers
by Turkish PKK rebels shows the need for continued
cooperation among the United States, Turkey and
Iraq.
"It reiterates the need for us to continue to work
with the Turkish government, as well as with the
Iraqi government, to make sure that we're all doing
what we can to combat this serious problem," State
Department deputy spokesman Tom Casey said at a
briefing.
"I think we've had ongoing discussions with both the
government of Turkey, as well as the government of
Iraq, on this issue.
It's a positive sign that there have been diplomatic
exchanges between the two to try and work out some
common approaches to this problem," Casey said.
Casey made the comments after reports said that
Kurdish PKK rebels killed four Turkish soldiers in a
clash Tuesday in the mainly Kurdish southeastern of
Turkey. More than 50 Turkish troops have been killed
in a series of hit-and-run attacks by Kurdish rebels
since late September, while Turkey says it has
killed dozens of rebels.
The Kurdish PKK rebels have fought more than 20
years for an independent Kurdish country in the
heavily Kurdish region of southern Turkey. www.ekurd.net
Source: Xinhua
**
Kurds are not recognized as an official minority in
Turkey and are denied rights granted to other
minority groups. Under EU pressure, Turkey recently
granted Kurds limited rights for broadcasts and
education in the Kurdish language, but critics say
the measures do not go far enough.
The use of the term "Kurdistan" is vigorously
rejected due to its alleged political implications
by the Republic of Turkey, which does not recognize
the existence of a "Turkish Kurdistan" Southeast
Turkey.
Others estimate over 40 million Kurds live in
Big Kurdistan (Iraq, Turkey, Syria, Iran, Armenia),
which covers an area as big as France, about half of
all Kurds which estimate to 20 million live in
Turkey.
Turkey is home to over 25 million ethnic Kurds, some
of whom openly sympathise with the Kurdish PKK for a
Kurdish homeland in the country's mainly Kurdish
southeast of Turkey.
Before August 2002, the Turkish government placed
severe restrictions on the use of Kurdish language,
prohibiting the language in education and broadcast
media.
The Kurdish alphabet is still not recognized
in Turkey, and use of the Kurdish letters X, W, Q
which do not exist in the Turkish
alphabet has led to judicial persecution in 2000 and
2003
The Kurdish flag flown officially in Iraqi Kurdistan
but unofficially flown by Kurds in Armenia. The flag
is banned in Iran, Syria, and Turkey where flying it
is a criminal offence"
Southeastern Turkey:
North Kurdistan (
Kurdistan-Turkey)
wikipedia
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