Friday, February 22, 2008

Turkish Military Launches Ground Offense in Iraq in Pursuit of Kurdish Rebels

From Fox News, via the Associated Press:

ISTANBUL, Turkey — Turkish troops have launched a ground incursion across the border into Iraq in pursuit of separatist Kurdish rebels, the military said Friday — an action that dramatically escalates Turkey's conflict with the militants.

It is the first confirmed Turkish military ground operation in Iraq since the U.S.-led invasion that toppled Saddam Hussein in 2003, and it raised concerns that it could trigger a wider conflict with the U.S.-backed Iraqi Kurds despite Turkish assurances that its only target was the PKK rebel group.

The PKK militants are fighting for autonomy in southeast Turkey and have carried out attacks on Turkish targets from bases in a semiautonomous Kurdish region of northern Iraq.
Private NTV television said 10,000 troops were taking part in the offensive and had penetrated 10 kilometers (six miles) into Iraq. This could not be confirmed independently....

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Labels: Headlines, Iraq, PKK, Turkey

posted by Pam @ 8:31 AM |

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