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Kurdish PEJAK group kills Seven Iranian
soldiers in border clashes
30.5.2007
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May
30, 2007
TEHRAN, -- Iranian security forces have
killed 10 armed "counter-revolutionary" Kurdish
rebels in clashes in a Kurdish-populated area
(Kurdistan province-Iran) close to its borders with
Kurdistan region (Iraq) and Turkey, media said on
Wednesday.
The clash took place Monday near the town of Salmas
in Iran's West Azarbaijan province, 30 kilometres
(20 miles) from the border with Turkey and 100
kilometres (60 miles) from Kurdistan region-Iraq, an
army statement carried by media said.
"Operational units succeeded on Monday in killing 10
armed counter-revolutionaries in the Salmas region
as part of a campaign to cleanse and secure this
border region," the statement said.
It did not give further details on the rebels but
past incidents in the area and its ethnic
composition indicate they were linked to Kurdish
militants.
West Azarbaijan province has been the scene of
regular armed clashes between Iranian security
forces and Kurdish militant parties, in particular
Pejak, a group linked to Turkey's outlawed Kurdistan
Workers' Party (PKK).
PEJAK, took up arms for self-rule in the country's
mainly Kurdistan province northwestern of Iran. Half
the members of PEJAK are women, many of them still in
their teens, and one of the female members of the
leadership council is Gulistan Dugan, a psychology
graduate from the University of Tehran.
"Cleansing operations are continuing in this
region," the army added. |
PEJAK Kurdish woman fighter, (PEJAK - Party for a
Free Life in Kurdistan), PEJAK fights against the
Iran regime for self-rule in the country's
mainly Kurdistan province northwestern of Iran AP |
Iranian security forces killed dozens of rebels in
separate incidents in March and February and also
lost 14 of their own personnel in a helicopter crash
during those operations.
The authorities insisted at the time that the crash
was an accident although the rebels issued a
statement claiming the helicopter had been shot
down.
Iran is bound by treaty with Turkey to fight the PKK.
In return, Turkey has pledged to fight Iran's main
armed opposition group, the Iraq-based People's
Mujahedeen.
Turkey has praised Iran's efforts to crack down on
Kurdish rebels linked to the PKK, who have been
waging a deadly armed struggle for self-rule in the
southeast of Turkey since 1984.
Turkey and Iran have in turn expressed
dissatisfaction with Iraq's failure to expel Kurdish
militants from its side of the border and even
threatened to launch cross-border raids inside Iraq
if Baghdad does not act.
Iranian authorities have regularly accused the
United States and Britain of seeking to stir unrest
amongst ethnic minorities in its sensitive border
areas close to the Turkish, Iraqi and Pakistani
frontiers.
Iran announced on Sunday that it has smashed major
sabotage networks masterminded by the United States
aimed at creating ethnic tensions in its border
provinces.
It said the networks had been broken up in Khuzestan
province which is home to a substantial community of
Arabs, Kordistan which is home to the Kurds and the
northern provinces with an Azeri majority.
AFP
Iranian Kurdistan
**
Iranian Kurdistan (Kurdish: Kurdistana Îranę or
Kurdistana Rojhilat (Eastern Kurdistan) or Rojhilatę
Kurdistan (East of Kurdistan)) is an unofficial name
for the parts of Iran inhabited by Kurds and has
borders with Iraq and Turkey. It includes the
greater parts of West Azerbaijan province, Kurdistan
Province, Kermanshah Province, and Ilam Province.
Kurds form the majority of the population of this
region with an estimated population of 4 million.
The region is the eastern part of the greater
cultural-geographical area called Kurdistan.
More about Iranian Kurdistan
The present leader of the organisation is Haji
Ahmadi. According to the Washington Times, half the
members of PEJAK are women, many of them still in
their teens, and one of the female members of the
leadership council is Gulistan Dugan, a psychology
graduate from the University of Tehran. This is due
primarily to the fact that PJAK is strongly
supportive of women's rights. PJAK believes that
women must have a strong role in government and must
be on an equal level with men in leadership
positions.
More about PEJAK- Party for a Free Life in Kurdistan
** 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.
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.
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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