US Pleads for Calm After Turkish Troops Pursuing Pkk Enter Iraq
Turkish troops crossed into northern Iraq in pursuit of Kurdish guerrillas yesterday, as the US warned against any action that could further destabilize the region.
Ankara admitted its men had clashed with fighters of the separatist Kurdistan People's Party (PKK) in the Dohuk area, angering the Kurdish regional government and the authorities in Baghdad.
The Turkish military said the ground incursion was triggered when two PKK groups were spotted just across the border. Iraqi officials denied there had been any clashes and said 300 Turkish troops had entered unpopulated and mountainous terrain near the frontier.
There was tension too over Sunday's Turkish attacks, when as many as 50 planes launched strikes against the rebels, the biggest such raid in years. An Iraqi official said the planes attacked several villages, killing one woman. The PKK said two civilians and five rebels died.
Masoud Barzani, president of the Kurdish region, canceled talks in Baghdad with Condoleezza Rice, the US secretary of state. "It is unacceptable that the US, in charge of monitoring our airspace, authorized Turkey to bomb our villages," said Nechirvan Barzani, prime minister of the Kurdish regional government. Turkey says it received intelligence from Washington and the US opened up Iraqi airspace for the attacking aircraft.
Rice said in Baghdad that the US supported Turkish efforts to crush the PKK but the air raid was "a Turkish decision". She added: "This is a circumstance in which we need an overall comprehensive approach to this problem. No one should do anything that threatens to destabilize the north."
President Abdullah Gul insisted that Turkey's only goal was to fight the PKK. "Iraq is Turkey's neighbor and we want to save the Iraqis from this trouble of terror," he said.
Iraq's foreign minister, Hoshiyar Zebari, said: "We believe any unilateral actions to destabilize the situation will harm Iraq's interests and Turkish interests at the same time. But at the same time we fully understand the legitimate concern Turkey has over the PKK terrorist activities."
Ankara admitted its men had clashed with fighters of the separatist Kurdistan People's Party (PKK) in the Dohuk area, angering the Kurdish regional government and the authorities in Baghdad.
The Turkish military said the ground incursion was triggered when two PKK groups were spotted just across the border. Iraqi officials denied there had been any clashes and said 300 Turkish troops had entered unpopulated and mountainous terrain near the frontier.
There was tension too over Sunday's Turkish attacks, when as many as 50 planes launched strikes against the rebels, the biggest such raid in years. An Iraqi official said the planes attacked several villages, killing one woman. The PKK said two civilians and five rebels died.
Masoud Barzani, president of the Kurdish region, canceled talks in Baghdad with Condoleezza Rice, the US secretary of state. "It is unacceptable that the US, in charge of monitoring our airspace, authorized Turkey to bomb our villages," said Nechirvan Barzani, prime minister of the Kurdish regional government. Turkey says it received intelligence from Washington and the US opened up Iraqi airspace for the attacking aircraft.
Rice said in Baghdad that the US supported Turkish efforts to crush the PKK but the air raid was "a Turkish decision". She added: "This is a circumstance in which we need an overall comprehensive approach to this problem. No one should do anything that threatens to destabilize the north."
President Abdullah Gul insisted that Turkey's only goal was to fight the PKK. "Iraq is Turkey's neighbor and we want to save the Iraqis from this trouble of terror," he said.
Iraq's foreign minister, Hoshiyar Zebari, said: "We believe any unilateral actions to destabilize the situation will harm Iraq's interests and Turkish interests at the same time. But at the same time we fully understand the legitimate concern Turkey has over the PKK terrorist activities."
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