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The Iraqi Minister of Foreign Affairs Fuad Hussein said in an extraordinary session of the Iraqi Parliament on Saturday that over 22,700 violations of Iraqi sovereignty by Turkey have been recorded within the last four years, and that the ministry had submitted 296 memoranda of protest against these violations.
The parliamentary session was held on the situation surrounding an artillery attack in Duhok in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq (KRI), that killed nine civilians and injured at least 23 on 20 July.
In his address to the Iraqi MPs, Hussein noted that a 1984 accord between the two countries allowed Turkish forces to enter Iraqi territory to a depth of only 5km and for a duration of just one year.
He added that the United Nations Security Council will hold an emergency session next Tuesday on Iraq’s request, to discuss the Turkish attacks on Iraqi soil, stressing that the latest incident was a clear violation of Iraqi sovereignty and international conventions.
He said:
“The Iraqi government wishes to find appropriate solutions with the Turkish side through negotiation, and to refrain from methods that will lead to escalation.”
MP confirms evidence of Turkish involvement in Duhok attack
Speaking to the Iraqi News Agency (INA), the MP Hussein Al-Sabri confirmed on Saturday that the investigation into the Duhok attack had found evidence of the involvement of Turkish forces.
Commenting on the presence of thousands of Turkish troops in five military bases and over a hundred military outposts in Iraq, the MP said:
“The security leaders confirmed that the Turkish forces took advantage of the period of the presence of Islamic State terrorist gangs and Iraq’s preoccupation with the war against the gangs, to penetrate Iraqi territory, and have established bases there since 2015.”
