Kurdish [PKK,YPG]–Turkish conflict

Turkish Jets Strike Kurdish Targets in Northern Iraq

Turkish air force F-16 jet fighters attacked Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) targets in northern Iraq as a three-year ceasefire came to end, local media reported Sunday.

ANKARA (Sputnik) – The Turkish jets, scrambled from the Diyarbakir airbase, struck PKK positions in the area of Harkurk along the Iraqi-Turkish border, according to the MyNet web portal. Ankara is yet to confirm the strikes.

The airstrikes followed Saturday’s operations, reportedly involving 50 warplanes and striking up to 400 targets in northern Iraq.

On Friday, Turkey officially launched its two-front campaign against PKK in northern Iraq and the Islamic State jihadist group in Syria.

This week has seen a surge in violence in Turkey, which shares southern borders with war-torn Syria and Iraq, stretching 510 miles and 220 miles respectively.

The attacks included a suicide bombing in the Turkish border town of Suruc that killed 32 people and injured over 100, and the killings of two police officers in the southern city of Ceylanpinar.

The Suruc suicide bomber was reportedly affiliated with the ISIL, which had captured vast Syrian territories. PKK, meanwhile, claimed responsibility for the Ceylanpinar killings, saying it was in retaliation for the deadly attack in Suruc.

Turkey’s pro-Kurdish People’s Democratic Party (HDP), along with Iraqi Kurdistan Regional President Masoud Barzani, called on Ankara to stop its anti-PKK campaign on Saturday.

The political group, founded in 1978 to support self-determination for Turkish Kurds and designated by Turkey as a terrorist organization, declared an end to the ceasefire on Saturday.

Read more: http://sputniknews.com/middleeast/20150727/1025075908.html#ixzz3h4sMXQRh

Turkey’s Pro-Kurdish Party Leader Accuses Ankara of Kindling War

The leader of Turkey’s pro-Kurdish People's Democratic Party (HDP) Selahattin Demirtas said that a recent escalation of hostilities between Kurds and the government would be catastrophic for Turkey, with a possibility of bringing the nation to the brink of civil war.

ANKARA (Sputnik) — The Turkish ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) is kindling a civil war in the country to stay in power, the leader of Turkey’s pro-Kurdish People's Democratic Party (HDP) Selahattin Demirtas said Monday.

In Turkey's June 7 general election, AKP, which has governed Turkey since 2002, lost its parliamentary majority but remained the largest party in the parliament. The party also failed to win the majority necessary to submit constitutional changes.

"As AKP lost the parliamentary majority on June 7, it has been trying to stay in power…. AKP has been trying to convince the public that if it loses power, chaos would ensue in Turkey," Demirtas told reporters.

A recent escalation of hostilities between Kurds and the government would be catastrophic for Turkey, with a possibility of bringing the nation to the brink of civil war, he added.

Kurds are Turkey's largest ethnic minority, comprising up to 25 percent of the population. The Kurdish pro-independence movement is especially strong in the southeast of the country.

"Currently the interim government … is dragging the country toward a great war, step by step. The AKP is bogged down in crime," the HDP leader added.

Recently, AKP was vilified by HDP for turning a blind eye on the threat of domestic violence in the country posed by the Islamic State (IS) militant group amid a terrorist attack in the city of Suruc on the Syrian border, where 32 people were killed and about 100 injured.

Turkey’s relations with Damascus worsened following 2011 beginning and currently ongoing civil war in Syria after Ankara supported Syrian opposition parties aiming to displace current President Bashar Assad. The relations between the two countries further deteriorated in 2012 when Syrian forces shot down a Turkish fighter jet, followed by subsequent border clashes later in the year.

Read more: http://sputniknews.com/middleeast/20150727/1025098718.html#ixzz3h7sphCZG

Erdoloony at it again, and this time it is so obvious. This is not about IS at all, IS free zone my a$$. Free zone will be there to contain/attack Kurdish advances in Syria, create more room and opportunities for conflict with Assad's forces and allows the TuAF to become Al Qaeda's de facto air force in the north. F*** 'em, Turkey deserves to be gutted in a bid for Kurdish statehood, they had their chance to be a responsible secular state in the ME and failed, let's see what the Kurds can do...

http://www.diclehaber.com/en/news/content/view/466308?from=2082207090

ISTANBUL (DİHA) - Lawyers have started a sit-in outside the house of Günay Özarslan, their client, slain by police today.

Lawyers from the People's Law Bureau say that they suspect that their client, Günay Özarslan, was assassinated by Istanbul police today. In the dawn hours today, Turkish police launched an operation that they claimed targeted members of the Kurdish left organization YDG-H (Patriotic Revolutionary Youth-Movement); Turkish left organization DHKP-C (Revolutionary People's Liberation Party-Front); and ISIS or Daesh.

Günay Özarslan was killed by police today in a home in Istanbul's Bağcılar district. Police claimed Özarslan opened fire, but lawyers from the People's Law Bureau say they suspect an assassination. Police have refused to allow lawyers into the building. They fear that evidence is being covered up in the killing. The lawyers are continuing their sit-in outside the building.

(Content blocked in Turkey apparently)

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/links-between-turkey-isis-now-195700510.html

Senior Western official: Links between Turkey and ISIS are now 'undeniable'

(REUTERS/Umit Bektas) An ISIS fighter walks near a black flag belonging to the Islamic State as a Turkish army vehicle takes position near the Syrian town of Kobani, as pictured from the Turkish-Syrian border near the southeastern town of Suruc, Sanliurfa province, October 7, 2014.

A US-led raid on the compound housing the Islamic State's "chief financial officer" produced evidence that Turkish officials directly dealt with ranking ISIS members, Martin Chulov of the Guardian reported recently.

The officer killed in the raid, Islamic State official Abu Sayyaf, was responsible for directing the terror army's oil and gas operations in Syria. The Islamic State (aka ISIS, ISIL, or Daesh) earns up to $10 million a month selling oil on black markets.

Documents and flash drives seized during the Sayyaf raid reportedly revealed links "so clear" and "undeniable" between Turkey and ISIS "that they could end up having profound policy implications for the relationship between us and Ankara," senior Western official familiar with the captured intelligence told the Guardian.

NATO member Turkey has long been accused by experts, Kurds, and even Joe Biden of enabling ISIS by turning a blind eye to the vast smuggling networks of weapons and fighters during the ongoing Syrian war.

The move by the ruling AKP party was apparently part of ongoing attempts to trigger the downfall of Syrian President Bashar Assad's regime.

Ankara officially ended its loose border policy last year, but not before its southern frontier became a transit point for cheap oil, weapons, foreign fighters, and pillaged antiquities.

(more at link)

Still, dealing with IS is different from "cooperating" or "facilitating" them. I would love it if some real dirt would turn up...Assange, wikileaks: give us some!

Turkey to Continue Attacks Until PKK Surrenders, ISIL Threat is Eliminated

Ankara will not stop its attacks until the threats from ISIL and the Kurdistan Workers' Party are eliminated.

ANKARA (Sputnik) – The Turkish army will continue its military campaign against the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) until the militants put down their weapons, the country's Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said Friday.

Last week, Turkey launched a two-front military campaign against Islamic State jihadists in Syria and the PKK in northern Iraq.

"The operation will last until the [PKK] armed factions leave the country and lay down their arms, and the threat posed by Islamic State is eliminated," Davutoglu said, speaking in Turkey's Chamber of Commerce.

According to the prime minister, the actions of the Turkish government against the terrorist threat were correct and timely.

"If we had not immediately responded to the attack…Turkey would be in a state of chaos," Davutoglu said.

The military action came in response to a string of deadly attacks attributed to ISIL and the PKK in southern Turkey.

On July 20, a suicide bombing took place in the Turkish border city of Suruc, killing more than 30 people, most of them Kurds. The attack was reportedly committed by ISIL. In response, Kurdish militia killed two policemen in Turkey, justifying the murders by claiming the officers had backed the Islamic State.

Read more: http://sputniknews.com/middleeast/20150731/1025276430.html#ixzz3hVu8l0CH

Turkey Disappointed by Negative Iraqi Stance on Airstrikes on PKK Positions

Ankara is disappointed by Baghdad's reaction to the Turkish airstrikes against Kurds on the Iraqi territory.

ANKARA (Sputnik) — Ankara is disappointed by the negative reaction from Iraqi authorities to its campaign in northern Iraq against militants of the outlawed-in-Turkey Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), the country’s Foreign Ministry said Friday.

Earlier this week, the Iraqi parliament called on the Turkish government to stop conducting airstrikes in its territory and warned that the continuation of the strikes could lead to a deterioration in bilateral relations.

"Our support to the fight that is being waged by Iraq against Islamic State is obvious. Iraqi authorities are aware of our policy of good neighborly relations. That’s why, the negative reaction of the Iraqi authorities to the actions undertaken by our country within the framework of international law against the PKK terrorist organization is disappointing," the Turkish Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

Baghdad has failed to remove the threat of attacks on Turkey from within its territory leaving many armed PKK militants to operate in northern Iraq, the statement emphasized.

Last week, Turkey launched a two-front military campaign against Islamic State militants in Syria and the PKK in northern Iraq following a suicide attack in the Turkish border city of Suruc that killed 32 people, and the murders of two police officers in the southern city of Ceylanpinar.

The attack in Suruc was reportedly committed by ISIL, while the PKK claimed responsibility for the Ceylanpinar killings, saying the policemen had backed the Islamic State.

The PKK is a Kurdish insurgent group that aims to achieve self-determination for the Kurdish community. The faction is considered a terrorist organization by the Turkish authorities.

Read more: http://sputniknews.com/middleeast/20150731/1025269282.html#ixzz3hVuKM3VL

Turkish Airstrikes Kill 260 Members of Kurdish PKK Militant Group

Turkish airstrikes have killed about 260 of the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) and injured up to 400 more in northern Iraq, local media reported Saturday.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) – The 12-hour campaign involving 28 F-16 fighter jets destroyed over 65 targets, including ammunition depots and underground shelters, according to the Anadolu Agency.

The outlet added that one of those injured in the aerial strikes was Nurettin Demirtas, brother of the pro-Kurdish Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) chairman Selahattin Demitras.

The late-Friday airstrikes followed Thursday’s campaign where 80 fighter jets took out around 100 PKK targets in Northern Iraq.

Ankara launched a two-front military campaign last week against Islamic State jihadists in Syria and the PKK in northern Iraq, in response to an unprecedented escalation of violence across southern Turkey.

The campaign led to the termination of Turkey’s two-year ceasefire with the PKK.

On Friday, Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu pledged to continue the anti-PKK strikes until the group designated as a terrorist organization by Ankara laid down its arms.

Read more: http://sputniknews.com/middleeast/20150801/1025294346.html#ixzz3haKruIAp

As the title says.

Today YPG (sic) made an attack on Turkish territury and killed 8 Turkish soldiers.

Walther von Oldenburg wrote:As the title says.

Today YPG (sic) made an attack on Turkish territury and killed 8 Turkish soldiers.

keep it here

Kurds Launch New Offensive Against ISIL Fighters in Iraq

Kurdish Peshmerga forces, backed by a US-led coalition airstrike campaign, have retaken 10 villages from self-proclaimed Islamic State militants in the Kirkuk province on Wednesday.

The move marks a significant victory for the Peshmerga, as the frontline between the Kurdish and Islamic State fighters has barely changed in months. The Kurds, who took over the disputed city of Kirkuk last summer after the Iraqi army abandoned their posts, have full control of the province with the exception of some western parts under Islamic State rule.

In an effort to secure their region, the Kurdish Peshmerga has launched several offensives to create a buffer between them and Islamic State held territory.

The recent offensive began in early hours of the morning in the Daquq area, roughly 110 miles north of the Iraqi capital city Baghdad, Peshmerga sources told Reuters. The Kurdish forces were quick to push Islamic State militants from the village of Albu Najm. Intense fighting continued until the evening, by the end of which, the Peshmerga took control of a 155 square mile area.

"This area [near Daquq] posed a danger to the main road from Kirkuk to Baghdad and the Kurdish and other villages adjacent to the areas occupied by Daesh," Brigadier General Aras Abdel Rahman told Reuters, referring to the Islamic State by the Arabic name.

Sources also told Reuters that five Peshmerga fighters and an aide to a top Kurdish commander were killed in the offensive. Most of them were killed by improvised explosive devices.

Peshmerga forces, who have secured Kirkuk and plan to maintain control of the disputed area, have emerged as important allies to the US’s efforts in fighting the Islamic State. They have worked together to push back the terror group from northern Iraq.

Read more: http://sputniknews.com/middleeast/20150826/1026235119.html#ixzz3jyG0xdQU

Resumption of Negotiations Only Way Out of Turkey-Kurdistan Crisis

Head of the Group of Communities in Kurdistan Zübeyir Aydar said that the conflict between Ankara and the Kurdistan could be solved only by negotiations.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) — Relations between Ankara and the Kurdistan region are extremely strained, and the only possible way out of this crisis is the resumption of negotiations between the Turkish and Kurdish leaders, head of the Group of Communities in Kurdistan Zübeyir Aydar told Sputnik Turkey on Friday.

“The current situation is that the problem will be either solved via the resumption of negotiations, or the worsening of the situation will reach its peak and will result in the war. It is not necessary to know much to foresee further development of the conflict. The only possible way out of this critical situation is to renew negotiations,” Aydar said.

Turkish Kurdistan region has long wanted to separate from Turkey and establish an independent state.

An armed conflict between Turkey and various Kurdish insurgent groups began in 1986, when the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), a founder of the Group of Kurdistan Communities, announced a so-called Kurdish uprising.

Turkish authorities have held indirect talks with Abdullah Ocalan, the jailed leader of the PKK, considered a terrorist group by Ankara, with the goal of stopping the conflict that has claimed over 40,000 lives do far, however the negotiations did not result in a comprehensive solution to the problem.

Read more: http://sputniknews.com/middleeast/20150904/1026606270.html#ixzz3kozxpRG4

Turkey’s Ground Forces Enter Iraq

Turkish Special Forces entered northern Iraq on Tuesday as part of a short-term operation to capture Kurdish rebels who had crossed the border after an attack that killed 16 soldiers.

Fourteen Turkish police were killed Tuesday in a new attack by Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) militants as violence in the east of the country threatened to spiral out of control.

That attack came two days after 16 Turkish soldiers were killed in a twin roadside bomb attack in Daglica in the southeastern region of Hakkari, according to the army, the deadliest strike in the current phase of the conflict.

In response, the Turkish air force pounded targets of the PKK in northern Iraq and special ground forces crossed the border in a rare land incursion.

The PKK initially took up arms in 1984 with the aim of establishing an independent state for Turkey's Kurdish minority, although lately the demands focused on greater autonomy and rights.

Read more: http://sputniknews.com/middleeast/20150908/1026742510/turkey-iraq-kurds-incursion.html#ixzz3lBspGRJ4

So in the crisis in KRG between KDP and PUK/Gorran,
I heard PUK is wanting to include Kurds within Kirkuk in the KRG vote...
Is that excluding non-Kurd residents of Kirkuk?
Or are they only intending highest Kurd % areas to vote?
PUK is seeming to push a stronger separatist line now from what I understand.

Anybody from Iraq/KRG/Kirkuk with a solid take on this?

Over 90 Kurdish Militants Killed in Airstrikes by Turkish Air Force

The Turkish Air Force killed between 30 and 35 Kurdish rebels in Turkey's Tunceli Province and between 55-60 were killed in northern Iraq.

ANKARA (Sputnik) – Over 90 Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) militants were killed in Turkey's Tunceli Province and in northern Iraq in airstrikes conducted by the Turkish Air Force, local media reported Saturday, citing military sources.

Between 30 and 35 Kurdish rebels were killed in Tunceli in the recent airstrikes carried out by two F-16 fighter jets, the Sabah newspaper reported.

According to the media, Turkey’s F-16 and F-4 fighter jets airstrikes on PKK targets in the Haftanin region in northern Iraq resulted in the deaths of 55-60 militants and the destruction of the group’s shelters and armories.

Tensions in Turkey escalated in late July, when the country launched a military campaign against the PKK in southern Turkey and northern Iraq, after the militants claimed responsibility for the murders of two Turkish police officers.

The PKK, considered to be a terrorist organization by Ankara, began its separatist insurgency in 1984. The group seeks to create a Kurdish state in parts of Turkey and Iraq.

According to Turkish authorities, over 110 police officers, servicemen and civilians became victims of the Kurdish militants in the past two months.

Read more: http://sputniknews.com/middleeast/20150919/1027242706.html#ixzz3mK4ReFOj

US confirms special forces on ground in Syria aiding Kurds

Defence officials have confirmed that US forces are aiding Kurds fighting Islamic State
A fighter from the Kurdish People Protection Unit (YPG) uses binoculars on the frontline in the northeastern Syrian city of Hasakeh last week (AFP)

US special operations forces are on the ground in Syria assisting Kurdish forces fighting the Islamic State, the head of the US military's Central Command reportedly told a Senate committee on Wednesday.

General Lloyd Austin revealed to the Senate Armed Services Committee that US Special Operations Forces are "engaged with YPG" Kurdish forces in the war-torn country, NBC reported.

Austin said that the special operations team was there to "advise and assist" and that they were "not engaged in any combat operations".

Kurdish fighters in the People's Protection Units (YPG) in northern Syria have been at the forefront of the fight against IS and now autonomously control a vast swathe of territory captured from the group and Syrian government.

The news is likely to complicate relations with US ally Turkey, who is currently engaged in a conflict with the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), who are ideologically and strategically aligned with the YPG in Syria.

During the hearing, Austin also said that "appropriate action" would be taken if an investigation revealed to be true allegations that intelligence reports had been exaggerated to make it look as though progress against IS had been more successful than it had been.

An investigation was launched after an intelligence officer in Central Command lodged a complaint in July.

"Published media reports suggest that the CIA's estimate of ISIL's manpower has remained constant, despite US airstrikes - which suggests that either they were wrong to begin with, or that ISIL is replacing its losses in real time. Neither is good," said committee chairman Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz.

"Indeed, this committee is disturbed by recent whistleblower allegations that officials at Central Command skewed intelligence assessments to paint an overly positive picture of conditions on the ground," he added.

'Boots on the ground'

Though US President Barack Obama has previously pledged there would be no "boots on the ground" in Syria, US forces have carried out a number of targeted operations in the country.

In May, a US special forces team carried out its first publicly admitted ground operation against IS in Syria, reportedly killing Abu Sayyaf, a senior IS commander who helped direct oil, gas and financial operations.

During the operation, the US claimed it had captured "reams of data on how IS operates, communicates and earns its money".

An earlier operation had also been carried out in summer 2014, in which US special forces reportedly attempted to free captured American journalist James Foley who was being held by IS.

They confirmed that they had engaged IS militants during the operation - which ultimately failed - but an official assessed that they "did not know who they were fighting that night".

A document from the security company Stratfor released by WikiLeaks in 2011 suggested that there had potentially been US special forces on the ground in Syria since 2011.

A security analyst from Stratfor said, in an email, that after talking with Pentagon officials they "said without saying that SOF teams (presumably from US, UK, France, Jordan, Turkey) are already on the ground focused on recce missions and training opposition forces".

- See more at: http://www.middleeasteye.net/news/breaking-us-special-ops-forces-ground-syria-aiding-kurds-1533366130#sthash.NJtt1jiD.dpuf

Kurdish Militants Claim Responsibility for Killing 75 Turkish Soldiers

The militants from the Kurdistan Workers' Party said that a total of 75 Turkish soldiers and policemen were killed in an attack on the military site on the border between Turkey and Iraq.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) — A total of 75 Turkish soldiers and policemen were killed in an attack on the military site on the border between Turkey and Iraq, the militants from the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) said as quoted by the local media.

“The PKK carried out during the last few hours several operations against the Turkish army and police positions in Chernakh area near the Iraqi border, which resulted in the killing of 75 Turkish soldiers and policemen,” a spokesman for the armed wing of the political group told Iraqi News portal on Sunday.

He added that militants seized Turkish soldiers’ weapons and ammunition in the operation that retaliated for the ”killing of a number of PKK fighters during the Turkish attacks on their positions.”

Tensions in Turkey escalated in mid-summer when the country launched a military campaign against PKK in northern Iraq, after militants claimed responsibility for the murders of several Turkish police officers they insisted were allied with Islamic State.

The PKK, considered to be a terrorist organization by Ankara, began its separatist insurgency in 1984. The group seeks to create a Kurdish state in parts of Turkey and Iraq.

Read more: http://sputniknews.com/middleeast/20150928/1027631875.html#ixzz3n0MVueXm

QUESTION: Anybody familiar with KRG developments?
Other issues aside, KDP seemingly seems more status quo based, while PUK/Gorran seem to be pushing separatism/expansionism more.
The latter are supposed to be pushing to include Kirkuk within KRG elections/regime, do they plan to include non-Kurdish voters as well?

Curious to see impact of Russian escalation vs ISIS/jihadis, and alliance including YPG, impacts broader Kurdish developments...

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CQeSZc4UYAAED_c.jpg

"Turkish security forces tie body of a Kurd behind their vehicle & drag him trough Sirnak."

Source: https://twitter.com/FGunay1/status/650649638358372352



Click on link above to view image... warning contains image of dead body being dragged through the streets by a vehicle.

Please note that objectionable material should be linked rather than posted so members have the choice of whether to see the image or not... potentially offensive photos need a written warning of their contents.

GarryB

Turks kept saying the picture was photoshopped. Then the video came out: https://twitter.com/Conflicts/status/650753456781721600
Now they say, "Well, he was a terrorist." I think they missed the narrative.

zorobabel wrote:Turks kept saying the picture was photoshopped. Then the video came out: https://twitter.com/Conflicts/status/650753456781721600
Now they say, "Well, he was a terrorist." I think they missed the narrative.

Turks another nation with some supremacy tendencies.

Putin VS Erdogan: Syrian Kurds Seek Alliance With Russia

Syrian Kurds have expressed their willingness to cooperate with Russia. This would be a setback for the Turkish President Erdogan, who is seeking to destroy the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), DWN wrote.

In an interview with al-Monitor, the leader of the Syrian Kurds Salih Muslim announced his willingness to cooperate with Russia and Syrian President Bashar-al-Assad, the newspaper reported.

He said the Syrian Kurds are interested in cooperating with anyone who fights against ISIL. Moreover, Russia had promised the government in Damascus that it would respond to any Turkish intervention in Syria, which many Kurds are afraid of.

The US, for its turn, has been also increasingly supporting cooperation with the Russians. Many US officials believe that Russia could be helpful in their fight against ISIL, which turned out to be more difficult than expected.

However, Turkey fears that potential Russia’s support for the Kurds may lead to a situation in which a new Kurdish region would form along its southern borders and destabilize Turkey. This could result in a further downturn in the relations between Turkey and Russia, which have already deteriorated after an aviation incident at the Turkish border.

On October 3, a Russian Su-30 fighter jet had briefly crossed Turkish airspace due to poor weather conditions. Russian authorities officially apologized for the incident, saying it was a "misunderstanding," and promised to avoid such incidents in the future.

Read more: http://sputniknews.com/russia/20151010/1028312895/putin-erdogan-kurds-alliance-russia.html#ixzz3oAGLMFvc