(MENAFN- AzerNews)
By Trend
Türkiye is prepared to take all steps to determine who
perpetrated the attack that killed eight civilians and injured 23
others in Iraq's Duhok province, the Foreign Ministry said in a
statement on Wednesday, calling on Iraqi Kurdish authorities to not
be influenced by the propaganda of the PKK terrorist group,
Trend reports citing Daily Sabah .
In a statement, the ministry underlined that Türkiye is against
all types of attacks that target civilians and extended its
condolences to the relatives of the deceased.
'Türkiye is against all kinds of attacks targeting civilians.
Türkiye carries out its fight against terrorism in accordance with
international law, with utmost sensitivity to the protection of
civilians, civilian infrastructure, historical and cultural
property and the environment. It is considered that such attacks
which aim at innocent civilians and are assessed to be organized by
the terrorist organization, target our country's just and
determined stance in the fight against terrorism.'
The statement went on to say that initial evaluations suggest
the attack was carried out by PKK terrorists, who do not refrain
from targeting civilians, with the aim to target Türkiye's
counterterrorism fight.
“Türkiye is ready to take all steps to reveal the truth,” the
ministry said, calling on the Iraqi government to refrain from
making statements under the influence and propaganda of the PKK and
to cooperate with Türkiye to find the real perpetrators of the
attack.
Eight civilians were killed in a park in Iraq's Kurdistan
Regional Government (KRG)-controlled region by artillery fire that
Baghdad blamed on neighboring Türkiye .
In an unusually strong rebuke, Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi
warned Türkiye that Iraq reserves the 'right to retaliate,' calling
the artillery fire a 'flagrant violation' of sovereignty.
His condemnation was echoed by the federal president and by the
KRG.
The victims included Iraqi tourists who had come to the hill
village of Parakh in the Zakho district to escape sweltering
temperatures further south in the country, according to Mushir
Bashir, the head of the Zakho region.
Irbil, the capital of the KRG, has complicated relations with
the PKK as its presence in the region hampers vital trade relations
with neighboring Türkiye.
Türkiye's latest cross-border operation was launched after
Turkish intelligence obtained information suggesting that the PKK,
which has sustained heavy blows in the past few years, was
preparing retaliatory attacks against Türkiye.
Operation Claw-Lock focuses on northern Iraqi regions,
particularly the areas of Metina, Zap and Avashin-Basyan. The
commando and special force units are supported by UAVs, attack
helicopters and artillery elements.
In 2020, Türkiye launched operations Claw-Tiger and Claw-Eagle
in the border regions of northern Iraq to ensure the safety of the
Turkish people and frontiers.
Iraq accused Türkiye of violating its sovereignty and on Tuesday
summoned the Turkish ambassador in Baghdad and delivered a
'strongly worded' protest note to him, the Foreign Ministry said in
a statement. Iraq also called on its neighbor to withdraw all of
its forces from Iraqi territory.
In response, the Turkish Foreign Ministry also handed a
diplomatic note to the Iraqi envoy on Thursday and accused the
Iraqi government of making 'unfounded allegations' over the
military operation.
Türkiye's operation was launched two days after a rare visit by
the prime minister of Iraq's autonomous KRG, Masrour Barzani,
suggesting that he had been briefed on Ankara's plans.
The PKK terrorist group often hides out in northern Iraq, just
across Türkiye's southern border, where it plots terrorist attacks
against Türkiye. The Turkish military regularly conducts
cross-border operations in northern Iraq. Türkiye has long stressed
that it will not tolerate terrorist threats posed against its
national security and has called on Iraqi officials to take the
necessary steps to eliminate the terrorist group. Ankara previously
noted that if the expected steps were not taken, it would not shy
away from targeting terrorist threats.
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