Kurdish protesters storm Turkish military base in Iraqi Kurdistan after civilian deaths in airstrikes, January 26, 2019. Photo: Roj news
SHILADZE, Iraq’s Kurdistan region,— Hundreds of angry Kurdish protesters stormed a Turkish military base in Shiladze, in Duhok province’s Amedi region in Iraqi Kurdistan Region on Saturday, burning Turkish military vehicles and leading to a confrontation that left one teenager killed and 15 injured, according to officials in Iraq’s semi-autonomous Kurdistan region.
They were protesting Turkish airstrikes in Iraqi Kurdistan that have killed at least six civilians this week.
The protesters were demonstrating against a recent Turkish air raid that killed six civilians, the officials said.
Hassan Rekan Hussein, a 13-year-old from Shiladze, was killed in the incident Saturday, and 15 were injured. They were shot at by the Turkish soldiers at the beginning of as protesters broke into the base, An eyewitnesses told AP.
According to Rudaw TV another 60-year-old man has been killed in the protests.
The demonstration initially started in Shiladze where people read statements condemning the airstrikes.
The protesters urged the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG), parliament, and political parties in the Kurdistan Region to play a role in resolving the problem.
Demonstrators called on the Turkish military and the Kurdistan Worker’s Party (PKK) to take their fight elsewhere.
A large contingent of Kurdish security forces is being deployed from Duhok city to Shiladze in response.
Kurdish security forces were able to disperse the protesters after a number of vehicles and tents were set ablaze.
Witnesses reported the sound of gunfire, but was not immediately clear whether Kurdish security forces or the Turkish military was responsible.
Turkish planes flew low over the town – in at least one case dropping flares – to disperse protesters and frighten Kurdish residents.
Turkey’s Defense Ministry wrote on Twitter: “An attack has occurred on one of bases located in northern Iraq as a result of provocation by the PKK organization. There was partial damage to vehicles and equipment during the attack,” according to Reuters.
Without naming the base, the ministry said “necessary precautions are being taken regarding the incident.”
The KRG issued a statement expressing “concerns and sadness for human losses and injuries in today’s incidents in Shiladze.”
It accused a “trouble-making hand” of being behind the protests.
“Relevant authorities are carefully investigating it and will punish the rioters and those who were behind it,” the KRG stated.
The protests were in response to deadly Turkish airstrikes that killed four people in the Rashava area in Deraluk sub-district in Iraqi Kurdistan Region at approximately 06:00 pm on Wednesday, January 23, 2019.
The deceased included two hikers, a student, and a Peshmerga.
The latter two were buried on Thursday. The hikers were classified as missing until Friday, when their bodies were found.
Vian Sabri, an Iraqi lawmaker from the Barzani’s Kurdistan Democratic Party KDP, which has close ties with the Turkish government, blamed the PKK for “exploiting” Saturday’s peaceful protest. She called on the PKK to end its “illegitimate” presence in the region and on Turkey to cease its airstrikes.
A PKK politician, Kawa Sheikh Moussa, rejected the Turkish accusations. “We do not have any office or representative in Shaladze,” he said. He added that the demonstration was an angry reaction to the Turkish killing of civilians.
Turkey has been bombing the Amedi district for the last five years. At least twenty non-combatants have been killed and dozens of others wounded in the attacks. Additionally, the airstrikes damage homes, infrastructure, and farmland.
Ankara justifies the strikes by saying that it targets suspected positions of the PKK in Iraqi Kurdistan Region.
Besides airstrikes, units of Turkish army have entered 30 kilometers into Iraqi Kurdistan.
Iraqi Kurdistan PM, Turkish FM speak by phone after protesters storm base in Shiladze
Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) Prime Minister Nechirvan Barzani and the Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu spoke by phone on Saturday (January 26) regarding the events in Shiladze.
Barzani told Cavusoglu that KRG authorities have launched an investigation into the incident and that they are following all required procedures, according to Turkish media outlets.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan threatened further action in the Kurdistan Region in a speech in the southeastern province of Gaziantep according to independent news site T24.
”They tried to wrong us today in Iraq. Our planes, our UAVs took off and they were forced to disperse. From now on we’re going to strike at them in their holes,”he said.
Reuters reported that Turkey has alleged that the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) has involved in the protests without providing evidence.
“We are committed to maintaining our close partnership with the people of Dohuk and doing everything in our power to prevent civilian casualties in the area,” Fahrettin Altun, communications director for the Turkish Presidency, told Reuters.
The PKK took up arms in 1984 against the Turkish state, which still denies the constitutional existence of Kurds, to push for greater autonomy in Turkish Kurdistan for the Kurdish minority who make up around 22.5 million of the country’s 79-million population. More than 40,000 Turkish soldiers and Kurdish rebels, have been killed in the conflict.
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