Iraqi Prime Minister (PM) Mustafa al-Kadhimi demanded an apology from Turkey following an airstrike in the Kurdistan region on Wednesday that killed eight tourists and injured 20 people. He also called on Ankara to withdraw its military forces from northern Iraq.
During an emergency meeting of the National Security Council (NSC), Kadhimi condemned the “brutal Turkish attack that targeted innocent citizens” in a tourist resort in the Duhok province. He said Turkey’s attack confirms its “ignoring of the continuing Iraqi demands to stop violations against Iraq’s sovereignty and the security of its citizens and to respect the principle of good neighbourliness.”
Noting that the attack was part of a similar “criminal incident” conducted by the Turkish air force, Kadhimi stated that the Foreign Ministry would prepare an exhaustive list of Turkish violations in the country and “submit an urgent complaint” to the United Nations Security Council (UNSC).
Without the permission of the #Iraqi government & the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) #Turkey won’t be able to conduct airstrikes within Iraq; not forgetting that the Iraqi airspace is controlled by the U.S.
— Cahîda Dêrsim (@dersi4m) July 20, 2022
And Turkey has more than 37 military bases within the #KRG! https://t.co/vg9oil3bUi
To this end, Turkey’s ambassador to Iraq was summoned to the Foreign Ministry and Baghdad has summoned its chargé d’affaires to Ankara for consultations. The PM added that Iraq is “stopping the procedures for sending a new ambassador to Turkey.”
He also directed the armed forces to take all necessary measures to prevent such an incident and urged greater security cooperation with the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG). “The Council renewed its refusal for the land of Iraq to be a springboard for attacking any country, and for it to be an arena for settling accounts, and its strong rejection of the presence of any terrorist organisation or armed group on its lands,” Kadhimi asserted.
Calling the attack a “flagrant violation” of Iraqi sovereignty, the Foreign Ministry stated that “a top-level diplomatic response will be taken, starting from resorting to the UNSC as well as adopting all other measures needed to be taken in this regard.”
Turkey has been carrying out cross border military ops for years against targets from the Kurdish militia PKK group, which is black listed as a terrorist org by Ankara, Washington & the EU. But sometimes - as Iraqi officials say happened today - civilians are killed.
— Lizzie Porterلِيزي بورتر (@lcmporter) July 20, 2022
According to reports, Turkish forces fired four missiles at a resort in Zakho city, which is hosting hundreds of tourists. Officials told the Associated Press that the resort is located near a Turkish military base, and the attack marked the first time that tourists had been killed in a Turkish airstrike.
However, Turkey denied that it was behind the attack. In a statement, the Turkish Foreign Ministry said Turkey’s fight against terrorism “is in accordance with international law.” It added that the Turkish military has always ensured the safety of civilian populations and that any attack against civilians could only have been carried out by terrorists, referring to the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) militants.
“We invite Iraqi government officials not to make statements under the influence of the rhetoric and propaganda of the treacherous terrorist organisation and to cooperate in bringing the real perpetrators of this tragic incident into light,” the ministry said.
Once again, #Turkey airforce attacks and kills #Iraq citizens without consequences - this time in #ZAKHO . Turkey has been bombing #Yezidi #Yazidi in #Sinjar , dozens of casualties, with no meaningful response. @nato: Turkey is a menace to peace and stability in #Iraq and #Syria! https://t.co/tEULE98m6v
— FreeYezidiFoundation (@Free_Yezidi) July 20, 2022
The United States also condemned the incident. State Department spokesperson Ned Price said the “killing of civilians is unacceptable” and called on all states to “respect their obligations under international law, including the protection of civilians.” Price’s statement did not refer to either Turkey or the PKK.
Turkey and the PKK have been waging a decades-old war against each other. While the PKK claims it is fighting for Kurdish sovereignty, Ankara insists that the group is a “terrorist” organisation and needs to be eliminated. Since the PKK has been fighting Turkey from Iraqi Kurdistan, Ankara has continuously launched several military campaigns to remove the PKK from Iraq.
I have sent Health Minister @DBarzangy, and spoken to @GuhdarSheekhoo to make available all the resources necessary for the wounded and the families who have lost loved ones.
— Masrour Barzani (@masrour_barzani) July 20, 2022
To this end, Turkey has intensified its assault on the PKK in Iraq over the last year. In April 2021, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan announced the launch of Operation Claw Lightning and Claw Thunderbolt to eliminate “terrorist threats” from Iraq and Syria. A year later, Turkey launched Operation Claw Lock to prevent the PKK from using Iraq to attack Turkey.
However, Iraq has condemned Turkey’s military actions as a violation of its sovereignty and has demanded that Ankara withdraw its forces.