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Blood price for the US support to Turkey’s
PKK operation: A military base against Iran
15.1.2008
By Mehmet Yaman. This was translated from Turkish by
Cem Ertür from CASMII
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January
15, 2008
Having given no support to Turkey’s struggle against
the PKK for a long time, the US supported the
Turkish army’s recent bombing of the Qandil mountain
in Iraqi Kurdistan.
The reason behind this support is becoming clear
now: An agreement made between the US, Turkey and
the Federal Administration of South Kurdistan for
the construction in South and North Kurdistan [i.e.
Northern Iraq and Southeastern Turkey respectively]
of two strategic US military bases targeting Iran.
According to a military specialist who trained
Kurdish Special Security Forces in Salahaddin, a
military base has already been established on the
strategically important Korek Mountain in the Diyana
(Soran) district of South Kurdistan. A specialist
team consisting of seven US and Israeli staff
members set up the connection of new satellite
systems and powerful radar receptors and dealt with
technical organisation.
The US dispatched the equipment for this base via
Turkish territory. Entry to and exit from the Korek
mountain area was banned before the launch of the
construction work,www.ekurd.net
with the exception of US
and Israeli specialists and the special teams that
support them. A US-trained 1,500-strong red beret
Peshmerga force was deployed in the area surrounding
the high-security base.
Before the US intervention on Iraq, the Turkish
intelligence agency MIT was operating in the region
to collect intelligence by intercepting
communication between guerillas. An Israeli
newspaper has previously reported that the US was
establishing a military base a few kilometers from
the Iraq- Iran border.
The Wall Street Journal came up with a similar news
item on September 11, 2007. Images of the base are
being published for the first time by the ANF Firat
News Agency. A second team reportedly began its
activities for setting up, with Turkey’s approval, a
similar military base in the Yüksekova district
(province of Hakkari, Turkey) near the Iranian
border.
Although the technical devices aren’t installed yet,
similar work is being carried out there as well.
Sepelke region is also being used for the two bases.
According to the political analysts in the region,www.ekurd.net
if the ongoing
US-Israeli intelligence and reconnaissance work on
the PKK will be successful, then this will also be
applied to Iran in different ways. For that reason,
the phase that began with the provision to Turkey of
intelligence on PKK seeks to achieve strategically
important results in the medium-and long-term.
The first step in that direction was made during a
meeting at the Khanzad Hotel which is located
between Hewler [Arbil] and Salahaddin. In that
meeting, it was agreed that in return for receiving
intelligence on the Qandil area, Turkey would
refrain from harsh statements and threats against
the Kurdish administration and provide support for
the construction of the military bases targeting
Iran and Syria.
campaigniran org | Firatnews com
Iraqi Kurdistan politician says, Turkey is using
Turkey's Kurdish separatist PKK rebel group as an
excuse to invade Kurdistan region 'Iraq' to prevent
the establishment of Kurdistan state in the Kurdish
autonomous region in 'northern Iraq',www.ekurd.net
Turkey fears this could
fan separatism among its own large Kurdish
population in southeast Turkey.
Since 1984 the PKK
took up arms for self-rule in the country's mainly
Kurdish southeast of Turkey.
A
large Turkey's Kurdish community openly sympathise with the Kurdish PKK for a
Kurdish homeland in the country's mainly Kurdish
southeast of Turkey.
The PKK demanded Turkey's recognition of the Kurds'
identity in its constitution and of their language
as a native language along with Turkish in the
country's Kurdish areas, the party also demanded
an end to ethnic discrimination in Turkish laws and
constitution against Kurds, granting them full
political freedoms.
The PKK, listed as a "terrorist" group by Ankara, US
and EU.
**
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, a
large Turkey's Kurdish community 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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