Turkey approved military action against Kurdish separatists

[notyoueither]

I'm certain that can't have been your first mistake.

[MarkG]

my first mistake was being born at the wrong time. i should have been born in 2546...

[VetLegion]

Originally posted by MarkG
and go where? this is probably one of the most idiotic statements a person calling himself a politician ever made

How about Greece? Borders Turkey, has lots of mountains, population is supportive of the cause...

[DinoDoc]

Originally posted by VetLegion
How about Greece?

Why not? They are a big supporter of the terrorist group after all.

[MarkG]

Originally posted by DinoDoc
Why not? They are a big supporter of the terrorist group after all.

hmmm no we dont really care

[MarkG]

invasion in 3,2,1...

Dozens die in Turkey border clash

At least 12 Turkish soldiers have been killed following an ambush by Kurdish rebels near the Iraqi border - with 23 rebels also killed, officials say.

The PKK guerrilla group said it had also taken "several" soldiers hostage.

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has recalled security officials to Ankara for a crisis meeting.

Correspondents say the attacks will increase the pressure on the government to launch raids into Iraq, after it was given clearance to do so by parliament.

On Wednesday, MPs voted overwhelmingly in support of a motion to allow the military to launch offensives across the border, against rebels based in the remote, mountainous north of Iraq.

It followed an escalation of raids by the PKK - the Kurdistan Workers' Party - as part of its armed campaign for Kurdish autonomy.

Recent attacks blamed on the group have left more than 30 Turkish soldiers and civilians dead.

Call for unity

In the latest attack shortly after midnight, a large group of PKK rebels crossed the border from Iraq and launched their attack near the village of Daglica in Hakkari province, the Turkish military said.

The rebels attacked with heavy weapons, also wounding a number of soldiers, Turkish media reported.

The Turkish military said it sent reinforcements and helicopters to the area, and launched retaliatory attacks in which 23 guerrillas were killed.

PKK sources confirmed the fighting, and claimed more troops were killed than the official figure of 12.

"There were clashes with the Turkish troops late last night in which we have killed at least 16 soldiers and wounded 20. We also captured several," Reuters quoted an unnamed rebel source as saying.

Not far from the scene of the fighting, in south-eastern Hakkari province, a minibus was later caught in a landmine explosion, also blamed on the PKK, that injured 10 civilians, the state news agency Anatolia said.

The prime minister said: "We are very angry."

But he said he was "resolved to deal with these matters in a cool-headed manner".

He urged the media to show restraint in its reporting of the situation.

Increased pressure

About 3,000 PKK fighters are believed to be based in northern Iraq near the Turkish border, says the BBC's Sarah Rainsford in Istanbul.

There have been regular clashes in the area since earlier in the year, but the latest attack was one of the deadliest for some time.

THE PKK
Formed in late 1970s
Launched armed struggle in 1984
Dropped independence demands in 1990s
Wants greater autonomy for Turkey's Kurds
Leader Abdullah Ocalan arrested in 1999
Ended five-year ceasefire in 2004

The clashes will increase pressure on the government from the public and the military for a tough response, our correspondent says.

The United States, Turkey's Nato ally, has called for restraint, urging Turkey to work with Iraq to solve the problem.

The US and Iraq fear any incursions would destabilise Iraq's most peaceful area - the autonomous Kurdish region in the north.

Iraqi leaders say they are determined to remove the PKK, but have pleaded for more time.

The autonomous Kurdish regional government in northern Iraq warned Turkish MPs that any intervention would be "illegal" and has denied providing the PKK with any help.

The rebels themselves said they would fight any Turkish forces which cross the border.

More than 30,000 people have been killed since the PKK began fighting for greater autonomy for the largely-Kurdish south-eastern Turkey since 1984.

[Imran Siddiqui]

The PKK is so retarded. Well, if they wanted Turkey to invade, they got it.

[Dinner]

Being a fanatic means being a ******. A great many Kurds are nationalist fanatics who absolutely hate that their people have been divided and conquered by Turks, Arabs, and Persians.

One Kurdish independence group after another has sprung up since the 19th century and this will likely continue to happen into the future.

[Patroklos]

They finally have an area that the can pretty much govern how they want to, and now they are going to **** it all up because it isn't the shape they want.

[MarkG]

Originally posted by Patroklos
They finally have an area that the can pretty much govern how they want to, and now they are going to **** it all up because it isn't the shape they want.

yeah, they could pause for 10-20 years before trying to free the rest of their country, couldnt they?

[Wezil]

I'm not so sure it is insane from their POV. Stability in the region means essentially the status quo, which they don't want. Instability may lead to something better (or they may just get screwed).

[Imran Siddiqui]

They'll get screwed. I'm sure they think that instability is better (Greater Kurdistan or die, or some nonsense). But all THIS instability will do is cause the Kurdish regions they can currently govern to be overrun by Turkish troops.

[Wezil]

Originally posted by Imran Siddiqui
But all THIS instability will do is cause the Kurdish regions they can currently govern to be overrun by Turkish troops.

Maybe, but you know the US isn't going to let them stay. What will happen to their support among like minded groups inside Turkey?

I just don't buy that they are insane fanatics acting against their own interests. There may be a dynamic we just don't see.

[OneFootInTheGrave]

Re: Turkey approved military action against Kurdish separatists

Originally posted by MosesPresley

http://www.cnn.com/2007/WORLD/meast/10/17/turkey.iraq/index.html

Yow!

I saw this coming, but that doesn't make it any better.

well I saw that coming in 2003 but hey... Iraq was nicely softened up for invasion by the Americans so that the Turks can come in, after all 120 years ago this was all Turkey anyhow. Turkey taking over Iraq, better than Iran or Syria, don't you think?

[MarkG]

hostages confirmed...

Eight Turkish troops are still missing after an attack by Kurdish rebels on Sunday that left 12 dead, the Turkish military has confirmed.
...

The pro-PKK Firat news agency said the rebels had captured eight soldiers and named seven of them.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/7056151.stm