Iraqi Parliament Condemns Turkey
Turkey says US Authorized Air Strikes on PKK
The Iraqi parliament on Monday condemned Turkish air strikes on what it said were bases of the Kurdish Workers Party inside Iraqi territory. The parliament decried what it called a "cruel" violation of Iraqi "sovereignty." Over two dozen Turkish troops have been killed in recent months by PKK guerrillas, who Ankara says are based in Iraqi Kurdistan.
Turkish chief of staff Yasar Buyukanit said that the United States gave tacit approval of the strikes by providing Turkey with intelligence on PKK movements. The US responded by saying that it had prior knowledge of the attack but did not authorize it.
The US certainly would be decried in Iraq if it were thought that Washington connived with Turkey at an air strike on Iraqi soil. On the other hand, the US would suffer opprobrium in Turkey if it were seen as doing nothing about a terror threat to Turkey enjoying safe haven in an American-occupied country. Probably both sides will end up hating the US about all this.
The problems with the dual authority being established in Sunni Arab areas-- with tribal Awakening Councils appointing themselves as, often, vigilantes-- became apparent on Monday when a firefight broke out in Bayji between Awakening members and local official police. There really need to be new provincial elections in Iraq so that if any Awakening members are actually popular, they can gain legitimacy at the polls.
Labels: Iraq
posted by Juan Cole @ 12/17/2007 05:55:00 AM
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New provincial elections ?
I didn't think the first ones had been held yet.
Avid (but spotty ?) Student
The problems with the dual authority being established in Sunni Arab areas-- with tribal Awakening Councils appointing themselves as, often, vigilantes-- became apparent on Monday when a firefight broke out in Bayji between Awakening members and local official police.
The problem could be that the Awakening members are of course local Sunnis. I wouldn't be at all surprised to hear that the police are not. Shi'a from the south, perhaps. A new police barracks has recently been built in Samarra. It is not for local men.
Iraqi blogger Riverbend explained why Turkey is disliked in Iraq:
First, there's a lot of animosity between the Kurds and Turks; thousands of Kurds faced constant persecution while on Turkish territory- many of them were driven into Iraq. Ever since the beginning of the war, there have been several clashes between Kurdish militias and Turkish troops in northern Iraq.
Second, everyone knows that Turkey has certain interests in the region- namely, Kirkuk and Mosul. Turkey has been overly eager to send in troops ever since the 'end' of the war in April.
Third, Shi'a are adamant about not allowing Turkish troops into Iraq because Turks are predominantly Sunni and the thought of an aggressive Sunni army makes the majority of Shi'a nervous.
One faction of Christian society in Iraq, Armenian-Iraqis, are dead set against having Turkish troops in Iraq. They speak of Turkish occupation, bloodshed, executions and being driven into Iraq. Armenian-Iraqis are horrified with the thought of having Turkish troops inside of Iraq.
Then there are all of the historical reasons. For almost 400 years, Iraq was ruled by the Ottoman Empire.... The Ottoman Rule in Iraq ended in 1918, with the start of the British occupation. Iraqis haven't forgotten that during World War I, hundreds of thousands of Iraqis were forced to fight and die for the Ottoman Empire.
Then there's the little issue of all the problems between Iraq and Turkey. Iraqis still haven't forgotten the infamous Ataturk Dam on the Furat (Euphrates), the fourth largest dam in the world. We had to watch the Euphrates diminish in front of our very eyes year after year, until in many areas, it seemed like nothing more than a stream. In a country that is largely composed of desert land, ebbing the flow of a river that many people depend on for survival is an atrocity.
The Puppet Council is completely opposed to a Turkish presence inside of the country; America is insistent that there should be one [in 2003].... we're all just watching from the sidelines, waiting to see just how much real respect the CPA has for the Puppet Council.
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