Information and liaison bulletin - Institut kurde de Paris
Information and liaison bulletin - Institut kurde de Paris
Information and liaison bulletin - Institut kurde de Paris
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Revue <strong>de</strong> Presse-Press Review-Berhevoka Çapê-Rivista Stampa-Dentro <strong>de</strong> la Prensa-Basin Ôzeti<br />
"It takes two to tango," Talabany said. "Well,<br />
three in this case."<br />
Driving around northern Iraq, the increased<br />
military presence <strong>and</strong> number of checkpoints<br />
around the bor<strong>de</strong>r region is readily apparent.<br />
While the checkpoints are meant to limit the<br />
movement of PKK rebels, Kurdish officials<br />
acknowledge that they also serve to prevent<br />
journalists from talking to the fighters, which<br />
had been one of Ankara's complaints.<br />
Memories of last invasion<br />
On the winding mountain road past Zawita, a<br />
Turkish flag waves in the middle of a Kurdish<br />
city. This is a remin<strong>de</strong>r painful to some of<br />
the last time Turkey inva<strong>de</strong>d northern Iraq in<br />
pursuit of the PKK, in the mid-1990s. Then,<br />
the two Kurdish parties that now form the<br />
Kurdish government, tiring of the PKK fighting<br />
from their territory, invited thous<strong>and</strong>s of Tur¬<br />
kish soldiers in <strong>and</strong> fought the PKK alongsi<strong>de</strong><br />
TIME . NOV. 12. 2007<br />
By PELIN TURGUT<br />
Forget a hero's welcome. After being held<br />
hostage by Kurdish guerrillas for two weeks<br />
<strong>and</strong> released last week after a Washington-led<br />
diplomatic effort, eight Turkish soldiers have<br />
been called traitors <strong>and</strong> cowards <strong>and</strong> <strong>de</strong>tained.<br />
The eight all in their late teens <strong>and</strong> early 20s<br />
are being charged with disobeying or<strong>de</strong>rs,<br />
"suspicion of crime" <strong>and</strong> "going to a foreign<br />
country without permission," the last presuma¬<br />
bly referring to their captivity un<strong>de</strong>r Kurdish<br />
rebels based in north Iraq.<br />
There was little joy at their release last week. The<br />
military is Turkey's most revered institution;<br />
every 18-year-old male is required to complete<br />
an army tour. Because Turkish soldiers are<br />
wi<strong>de</strong>ly upheld as heroes, the former hostages<br />
were vilified by the public for not choosing <strong>de</strong>ath<br />
over the dishonor of capture by the enemy. With<br />
nationalist fervor at a peak, some right-wing<br />
pundits accused them of being Kurdistan Wor¬<br />
kers Party (PKK) moles. One was of Kurdish<br />
origin, others pointed out. Justice Minister<br />
Mehmet Ali Sahin said he could not "accept the<br />
fact that they went with the terrorists that night.<br />
Our soldier is prepared to die if necessary when<br />
he is protecting the country."<br />
Although Turkey's army chief of staff Yasar<br />
Buyukanit initially said there was no evi<strong>de</strong>nce<br />
them.<br />
Some who witnessed the fighting in 1996-97<br />
said that the only time the Turks appeared to<br />
be successful in their attacks was when the<br />
Iraqi Kurds joined in the fight.<br />
"When the Turks fought by themselves, they<br />
would use a lot of force to kill some fighters,<br />
but as soon as they left, the PKK would come<br />
back," said Reber Muhammed, a former local<br />
journalist who covered half a dozen battles for<br />
his television station. "But the [security forces]<br />
knew the area <strong>and</strong> the PKK's tactics. In every<br />
battle, if the Kurds did not go first, the Turks<br />
would not dare to move."<br />
Ten years later, experts again say it is only<br />
with the cooperation of the Kurdish authorities<br />
that the Turks have much chance of success<br />
against the PKK although it's not known<br />
how much cooperation they will get.<br />
Even while disavowing influence over the<br />
Turkish Hostages Called Traitors<br />
QTwfStaie Nov. 13. 2007<br />
against the men, they were later<br />
<strong>de</strong>tained un<strong>de</strong>r military law.<br />
The episo<strong>de</strong> lays bare the hard-line<br />
psychology of Turkey's military, a<br />
powerful political player. It does not<br />
brook public scrutiny. The hostagetaking<br />
inci<strong>de</strong>nt, in which 200 PKK<br />
guerrillas stormed a heavily protec¬<br />
ted unit, killing 12 soldiers, is still<br />
shrou<strong>de</strong>d in mystery. How did so<br />
many guerrillas manage to infiltrate<br />
a heavily guar<strong>de</strong>d area? Why did it<br />
take so long to get reinforcements to<br />
the scene? How did the guerrillas<br />
<strong>and</strong> hostages leave? In their testi¬<br />
mony, the men all of whom were<br />
in different positions in a mountai¬<br />
nous region near the Iraqi bor<strong>de</strong>r said they<br />
found themselves un<strong>de</strong>r fire <strong>and</strong> surroun<strong>de</strong>d by<br />
PKK fighters; several said their guns jammed.<br />
According to news reports, they surren<strong>de</strong>red<br />
individually when they ran out of ammunition.<br />
"This is the military's response to an inci<strong>de</strong>nt<br />
that has ma<strong>de</strong> them uncomfortable," says politi¬<br />
cal commentator Mehmet Ali Bir<strong>and</strong>. "The<br />
military is giving a clear message to any soldier<br />
who finds himself in a similar situation. That<br />
message is 'Fight. Do not surren<strong>de</strong>r easily'."<br />
rebel group, the Kurdish government was<br />
instrumental last week in returning eight<br />
Turkish soldiers held hostage by the PKK.<br />
The Kurdish population also generally ex¬<br />
presses support for the group, though some<br />
fear the guerrilla movement could compro¬<br />
mise the Kurds' hard-won chance at an in<strong>de</strong>¬<br />
pen<strong>de</strong>nt state.<br />
Jowher Miran, a peshmerga fighter from<br />
Salahuddin, was transferred to the Zawita<br />
area two weeks ago. The stocky 37-year-old<br />
says he fought against the PKK in the mid-<br />
'90s, but now he calls them his brothers.<br />
"I wouldn't do it again. They are fighting for<br />
their rights, just like we were against Sad¬<br />
dam," he said.<br />
Recruit Irfan Beyaz's father learned of his son<br />
<strong>de</strong>tention from journalists. "I can't believe this is<br />
happening," he was quoted as saying. Private<br />
Ozhan Sabanoglu's family, in the southern town<br />
of Hatay, found out from watching TV. "We have<br />
been waiting in fear <strong>and</strong> pain for days, said his<br />
father, Bahattin Sabanoglu. "We love our coun¬<br />
try. I cannot un<strong>de</strong>rst<strong>and</strong> it. My plea to the Gene¬<br />
ral Staff, to the generals is give us information."<br />
A lawyer for the eight men says he will appeal<br />
the arrests. They may later st<strong>and</strong> trial, but in the<br />
eyes of a public consumed by nationalist pri<strong>de</strong>, a<br />
verdict has already been <strong>de</strong>livered.<br />
Turkish Gunships Attack Kurdish Villages<br />
Insi<strong>de</strong> Iraq<br />
By YAHYA BARAZANJI Associated Press Writer<br />
Turkish helicopter gunships attac¬<br />
ked ab<strong>and</strong>oned villages insi<strong>de</strong><br />
Iraq on Tuesday, Iraqi officials said, in<br />
the first such strike since bor<strong>de</strong>r<br />
tensions have escalated in recent<br />
months.<br />
A spokesman for the Kurdish regional<br />
82<br />
administration, Jamal Abdullah,<br />
<strong>de</strong>nied the report but said two Turkish<br />
warplanes dropped flares Monday in<br />
the mountains near Zakhu.<br />
But Col. Hussein Tamir, an Iraqi<br />
army officer who supervises bor<strong>de</strong>r<br />
guards, said the airstrikes occurred<br />
before dawn on ab<strong>and</strong>oned villages<br />
northeast of Zakhu, an Iraqi Kurdish<br />
town near the bor<strong>de</strong>r with Turkey.<br />
There were no casualties, he said.<br />
A spokesman for the rebel Kurdistan<br />
Workers' Party, or PKK, corrobora¬<br />
ted Tamir's account of the airstrikes,