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Germany warns Turkey on incursion into
Iraqi Kurdistan
22.2.2008
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February 22, 2008
BERLIN, -- Germany warned Turkey Friday of
the "risk of destabilisation" following its
military
incursion into Iraqi Kurdistan and said it must act
within international law.
German government spokesman Martine Jaeger said that
Berlin was watching developments with "a great deal
of anxiety."
"In all events, respect for international law must
be the criteria for any action," he told a press
briefing in the German capital.
"We call on the Turkish government,in its fight
against terrorism, to restrict itself to measures
which, in the last resource, are necessary for the
protection of the Turkish population,www.ekurd.net
and we warn against an
additional worsening of the situation."
The presence of Turkish troops in northern Iraq
"represents a not inconsiderable risk of
destabilisation and our embassy in Ankara is trying
to make contact with the secretary general of the
(Turkish) national security council to have clearer
information," he added.
The Turkish army said earlier that its forces
entered Kurdistan region 'northern Iraq' to hunt
Turkish-Kurdish PKK separatist rebels after
airstrikes and shelling struck at their bases.
Some 10,000 troops were reported to have penetrated
10 kilometers (six miles) into the autonomous
Kurdistan in northern Iraq.
Over 39,000 Turkish soldiers and Kurdish PKK
guerrillas have been killed since 1984 when 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 rebels.
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, ranting them full
political freedoms.
The PKK is considered a terrorist organization by
the U.S. and the EU.
AFP
**
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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