Turks launch operation against Kurd rebels

Turkey dramatically escalated its campaign against Kurdish rebels hiding in northern Iraq when thousands of troops invaded the territory on a search and destroy mission today.

It is the first confirmed large-scale ground operation by Turkey across the border since Saddam Hussein was toppled.

Turkey has previously confined itself to air attacks against the PKK guerrillas in northern Iraq since December, with the help of US intelligence, and ground raids in which small units sometimes spend only a few hours inside Iraq.

A PKK spokesman said two Turkish soldiers were killed and eight wounded in clashes along the 240-mile border, but there was no comment from the Turkish military.

The Kurdish militants are fighting for autonomy in Turkey’s predominantly Kurdish south-east, and have carried out attacks on Turkish targets from bases in northern Iraq. The US and the European Union consider the PKK a terrorist organisation.

“The Turkish Armed Forces, which values Iraq’s territorial integrity and its stability, will return as soon as planned goals are achieved,” the military said. “The executed operation will prevent the region from being a permanent and safe base for the terrorists and will contribute to Iraq’s stability and internal peace.”

Private NTV television said 10,000 troops were taking part in the offensive and had penetrated six miles into Iraq, although some reports said that not all the troops had been deployed.

A US spokesman in Iraq, said the military had received assurances from its Nato ally Turkey that it would do everything possible to avoid “collateral damage” to innocent civilians or infrastructure.

“Multi-National Forces-Iraq is aware Turkish ground forces have entered into northern Iraq, for what we understand is an operation of limited duration to specifically target PKK terrorists in that region,” he said in a statement.

“The United States continues to support Turkey’s right to defend itself from the terrorist activities of the PKK and has encouraged Turkey to use all available means, to include diplomacy and close co-ordination with the Government of Iraq to ultimately resolve this issue,” he added.

The European Commission appealed to Turkey to act with restraint.

“Turkey should refrain from taking any disproportionate military action and respect human rights and the rule of law,” said a Commission spokeswoman.

“The EU understands Turkey’s need to protect its population from terrorism,” she said. “We encourage Turkey to continue to pursue dialogue with international partners.”

The military said its targets were PKK rebels and it does not want to harm civilians “and other local groups that do not act in enmity against the Turkish Armed Forces.”

Nihat Ali Ozcan, a terrorism expert with the research centre TEPAV, said the operation was launched at this time to hit the group before any infiltration by rebels into Turkey in the spring, the traditional start of the fighting season.

“I think it is aimed to keep the PKK under pressure before the group starts entering Turkey,” he said.