Dec. 22, 2007
Turkey Launches New Attack On Iraq
Warplanes Hit Kurdish Rebel Targets In Latest Confirmed Cross-Border Offensive
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(AP / CBS)
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Photo Essay Turkey-Iraq Tensions Nation mulls cross-border military incursion into northern Iraq to chase Kurdish rebels.
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Interactive Battle For Iraq The government, the insurgency, key players, background and photos.
The U.S. Embassy in Ankara said it was informed before the assault took place, but gave no further information. The United States and Iraq both have urged Turkey to avoid a major operation in the area, fearing it could destabilize what has been the calmest region in Iraq.
The bombing lasted nearly a half-hour on Saturday afternoon, and was followed by shelling from inside Turkish borders, the military said in a statement posted on its Web site. It did not say how deep into Iraqi territory the warplanes penetrated, or which areas were shelled.
Security forces in northern Iraq said the bombs fell about 75 miles northwest of Dahuk. There were no casualties reported, said Jabar Yawar, a spokesman for Kurdistan's Peshmerga security forces in northern Iraq.
It vowed to continue military operations on both sides of Turkish-Iraqi border "no matter how the conditions are."
Turkish jet fighters on Dec. 16 launched the first confirmed air assault on Iraqi soil since the U.S.-led invasion, bombing bases in northern Iraq held by the separatist Kurdistan Workers' Party, or PKK.
Two days after the first air assault, Turkey sent hundreds of troops into northern Iraq, but withdrew them later in the day. The military said the two operations dealt a major blow to the rebels.
In Saturday's statement, it said hundreds were killed in the operations, citing "intelligence gathered from various sources." It said footage showing the results of the operations would be released in coming days.
Turkish forces periodically have shelled across the border, and sometimes have carried out "hot pursuits" - limited raids on the Iraqi side that sometimes last only a few hours.
The rebels have battled for autonomy in southeastern Turkey for more than two decades, and use strongholds in northern Iraq for cross-border strikes.
After a surge in rebel attacks in the past months, Turkey has said it can no longer tolerate the attacks on its troops, and in October Turkey's Parliament authorized the military to strike back at the rebels inside Iraq.
"The terrorist organization of the PKK will see and understand that there is no secure place left Iraq's north, and it will understand that it has no chances against the Turkish Republic," the Turkish statement said.
In a Nov. 5 meeting with Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, President Bush declared the PKK a "common enemy," and promised to share intelligence on the group.
Washington has been providing Turkey with intelligence to go after the rebels, and a coordination center has been set up in Ankara so Turks, Iraqis and Americans can share information.
But the U.S. Embassy declined to say whether American intelligence was involved in Saturday's offensive.
The U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees reported that more than 1,800 people fled their homes in parts of northern Iran, and Iraqi officials have complained that Turkey's actions are a violation of Iraqi sovereignty. They have also said they recognize the threat posed by the PKK.
In other developments:
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- There you go with that Iraq stuff again. Write about a nice country, like Norway.
- Reply to this comment
- Was this very scenario one of the reasons why we were supposed to have this travesty of a war? To defend and protect the Kurds from Saddam''''s genocide? Can any neocon explain how they manage to support this?
Posted by Fornicario at 12:01 PM : Dec 23, 2007
Can any Democrats explain why Pelosi and Reid HAVE NOT stopped it like they PROMISED AMERICA? - Reply to this comment
- I gave all my Liberal friends a lump of coal and a carbon offset voucher for Christmas.
I gave all my Conservative friends a sapling and box of matches.
I gave all my Green Party friends a, a . . .
I don''t have any Green Party friends.
Merry Christmas! - Reply to this comment
- Was this very scenario one of the reasons why we were supposed to have this travesty of a war? To defend and protect the Kurds from Saddam''s genocide? Can any neocon explain how they manage to support this?
- Reply to this comment
- The sad thing to me is that any analyst evaluating a potential U.S. incursion into Iraq before this all started would have known that foreign involvment of this sort was almost inevitable at some point if we were successful in destablizing the hussein government, even if they could not be certain which neighboring government it would be. It would have been yet one more reason not to undertake the overthrow of hussein, however undesirable he was... The thing to keep in mind at this point is that it is almost certain that Turkey and Iran will not be the only governments to undertake action within the borders of Iraq before this is all over with... The desire to control Iraq''s oil reserves combined with a closer culteral identity with Iraq''s people than the U.S. can claim will make the possibility of success in gaining control of their oil assets too great for Iraq''s neighboring governments to forgo the effort to try... Especially since these governments will be able to use pre-existing tribal and/or nation conflicts to mobilize support among the general population for any such action.
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Are Americans ready to get out of the Bu$hCo slime pit???- Reply to this comment
- Turkey and the PKK have been going at it and had these same problems for decades, nothing new here! What is new is Saddam''s absence and Iraq''s Civil War leading to Iraq''s divided attention, inability to defend itself and slow reconciliation and rebuilding process. It looks like Turkey is taking advantage of Iraq, kicking Iraq when Iraq is down, crossing over into Iraqi borders when Iraq is too weak to challenge Turkey. At one point Iraq had the 4th largest military in the world and a very active Air Force. Turkey would not dare cross Iraqi borders then and should not be crossing into Iraqi borders now that Iraq is down. Turkey is also planting some dangerous seeds that it may live to regret! The Iraqi''s will not always be down and have long memories, I have a feeling this border incursion will be revisited again in the future when the Iraqi''s can properly address it.
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- This ia great,USA uses their power to go in and destroy a country that had no WMD and now we are letting others kick them while their down.
That''s a lot like taking the guns away from the people in America so they can''t protect themself from the bad guys. THERE IS SOMETHING WRONG WITH OUR LOGIC.I wonder if our military and political leaders have any idea what their doing.You can bet your sweet rose Russia and China are thinking the same thing,Have you noticed Russia and China won''t let America touch Iran''s nuclear power plants,Russia has even sent troops and started building a new power plant for Iran(it made the news). Like I said, something wrong with American logic. I am thinking we may have dug a whole to deep to get out of,even if we pull out of Iraq,the stage is set for Russia and China to take over all the oil supplies. OUR BAD. - Reply to this comment
- Just another instance of Bush''s incompetence and the destruction he is visiting not only upon the US but around the world.
WHEN is this man and his right hand man Cheney going to be impeached???????????? - Reply to this comment
- THERE ARE STILL NO METERS ON THE IRAQI OIL PIPELINE...
AND THE JEWISH NEOCONS ARE NEGOTIATING FOR HIS OIL...
DANIEL PEARL...FOR ONE...
STENY HOYER AND CARL LEVIN ARE IN THE POCKETS OF THE ISRAELI LOBBY GROUP AIPAC...
YEA AMERICA YOU GET WHAT YOU VOTE FOR...
STAND UP FOR YOUR CONSTITUTIONAL RIGHTS AND CHANGE THIS MESS OR SHUT UP... - Reply to this comment
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