Turkey is gearing up for a renewed military campaign in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq (KRI), with 161 villages in the region already forcibly evacuated and a further 602 villages facing imminent displacement, journalist Botan Germiyanî reported.
Speaking to the Mezopotamya agency, Germiyanî also said that Turkey was preparing to attack the area around the Gara (Garê) mountain near the city of Duhok.
The strategic 39-kilometre-long Gara mountain has been a focal point for Turkey. Germiyanî highlighted Turkey’s previous intensive attacks on the Gara region in February 2021, which ended in failure.
The Gara region has long been a hotly contested area, with various actors vying for control. Predominantly Kurdish, Turkey’s impending offensive is widely seen as an attempt to assert its dominance and crush the Kurdish movement. The Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), which is engaged in a protracted conflict with Turkey, maintains a presence in the region.
Turkey sees the PKK within the Kurdistan region as a direct threat, and it has repeatedly launched operations across the border with Iraq. Over the years, the ongoing conflict between Turkey and the PKK has resulted in significant casualties and displacement.
The forced evacuation of villages in the Garê region not only disrupts the lives of local people, but also raises concern about the treatment of civilians in conflict zones. Reports of forced evacuations suggest that Turkey may be using tactics that violate the rights and safety of civilians, in violation of international humanitarian law.
Turkey’s support for trade routes to influence Iraq on PKK operations
More recently, Turkish authorities have stepped up political, military and diplomatic efforts to expand their campaign against the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) in Iraq. Turkish Defence Minister Yaşar Güler said on Monday that concerted military action would make terrorism a non-issue for Turkey. Güler’s assertion echoes President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s plan, announced last week, to create a ’30-40 kilometre security corridor’ along the borders with Iraq and Syria to eradicate the presence of PKK guerillas.
The preparations for Turkey’s offensive have highlighted the role of the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP), the dominant political entity in Iraqi Kurdistan led by the Barzani family. The KDP has been accused of collaborating with Turkey in operations against Kurdish factions. The Turkish authorities have held extensive talks with the KDP to secure local support for the success of its operations.
Efforts are also underway to sway Iraq, which opposes Turkey’s actions against the PKK considering them a violation of Iraq’s territorial integrity, by supporting a trade route project. Baghdad is keen on the Development Road Project, or the New Silk Road, to revitalise its oil-based economy, which has suffered from regional dynamics. Observers suggest that Turkey is trying to force the Iraqi government to support the operations, arguing that the PKK is a threat to the project, jeopardising its completion scheduled for 2029.
Güler’s remarks during a visit to the Kurdish-majority Şırnak (Şirnex) province situated on the Iraqi-Turkish border on Wednesday suggest an anticipation of Iraqi government cooperation, hinting at potential sanctions against Iraq in case of non-compliance.
Civilian casualties rise
Turkey regularly conducts ground offensives in Iraq’s Kurdistan Region and has established several military bases on Iraqi soil to support its contentious cross-border operations.
The intensified military campaigns by Turkey against Kurdish guerrilla forces in the Zap, Metina (Metîna), and Avashin (Avaşîn) areas of northern Iraq have persisted since the latest ground offensive launched in April 2022.
In addition to ground operations, Turkey frequently conducts airstrikes. According to Reuters, Turkish forces carried out 6,000 airstrikes in Syria and Iraq between the beginning of 2018 and June 2023.
Germiyanî said that Turkey conducted 428 offensives in civilian areas of the region over the last two months alone.
Since 2015, at least 154 civilians have been killed, and 220 wounded in Turkish strikes. These attacks have predominantly occurred in Sulaymaniyah, Dohuk, Erbil (Hewler), Nineveh, and the Yazidi homeland of Sinjar (Shengal).
Inhabitants of the region harbour deep-seated resentment towards Turkey.
