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Turkish army hits back at criticism over
Iraqi Kurdistan pullout
5.3.2008
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March 5, 2008
ANKARA, -- The Turkish army has hit back at
criticism from opposition parties over a week-long
offensive against Turkey's Kurdish PKK rebels in
Kurdistan region 'northern Iraq' amid a row that the
operation was ended too quickly under US pressure.
The general staff slammed critics as "unfair and
base" in a statement posted on its web site late
Tuesday, hours after the Nationalist Action Party (MHP)
and the Republican People's Party (CHP) questioned
the army's handling of the incursion.
"For the first time in our 24-year struggle against
terrorism, the Turkish armed forces are being made
the target of such meaningless attacks," the
statement said.
"These attacks hurt the determination of the Turkish
armed forces to fight terrorism more than the
traitors do," it added.
The remarks of MHP and CHP leaders were an unusual
blow to the military as both parties are usually its
backers in spats with the ruling Islamist-rooted
Justice and Development Party.
MHP chairman Devlet Bahceli accused the army of
boosting the image of the separatist Kurdistan
Workers' Party (PKK) with press releases that spoke
of rebel facilities such as "command centres" and
"defence posts" that,www.ekurd.net
he argued, portrayed the
group as a strong military opponent.
CHP leader Deniz Baykal, meanwhile, cast doubt on
assertions that the pullout decision was not made
under US pressure and called for explanations.
Turkish forces withdrew
from semi-autonomous Kurdistan region in 'northern
Iraq' Friday morning, only a day after US President
George W. Bush
urged Ankara to
quickly wrap up the incursion and Defense Secretary
Robert Gates personally
put pressure on
Turkish leaders during a visit to Ankara.
Turkish soldiers
crossed into Kurdistan region
in 'northern Iraq' on February 21 for what officials
described as a limited incursion against the PKK
after two months of air strikes on rebel positions.
The military has fiercely denied any US role in the
pullout, saying that the offensive achieved its
objective and a significant part of the forces had
already returned home before Gates even arrived in
Ankara.
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 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.
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', Turkey fears
this could fan separatism among its own large
Kurdish population in southeast Turkey.
Its militants take refuge in neighbouring northern
Iraq and use camps there as a springboard for
attacks on Turkish targets across the border.
AFP | Agencies
**
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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