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EU calls on Turkey to avoid
'disproportionate' army action in Iraqi Kurdistan
22.2.2008
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February 22, 2008
BRUSSELS, -- The European Commission on
Friday urged Turkey to refrain from taking any
"disproportionate military action" following its
incursion into northern Iraq, adding that it was
watching the situation "closely".
"We have seen the statement issued by the Turkish
army," Commission spokeswoman Kristina Nagy told
reporters in Brussels.
"The European Union understands Turkey's need to
protect its population from terrorism," she said.
However the EU calls on Turkey,www.ekurd.net
an EU candidate nation,
"to refrain from any disproportionate military
action and should respect human rights and the rule
of law," she added.
The EU foreign policy chief, Javier Solana, for his
part said Turkey's action was "not the best
response."
"We understand the concerns of the Turks," he told
reporters following a meeting of EU defence
ministers in Slovenia.
"But we think this action is not the best response,www.ekurd.net
" he said. "The
territorial integrity of Iraq is for us very
important."
Nagy said the EU's executive had seen the statement
issued by the Turkish army "announcing a ground
operation in the northern part of Iraq."
The army said earlier Friday that its troops entered
Kurdistan region 'northern Iraq' to hunt
Turkish-Kurdish PKK separatist rebels after fighter
jets struck at their bases.
Some
10,000 troops
were reported to have penetrated 10 kilometers (six
miles) into the autonomous Kurdistan region in
'northern Iraq'.
"We encourage Turkey to continue to fulfil dialogue
with international partners on this matter," she
added.
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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