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Iraqi foreign ministry spokesman Ahmed Al-Sahaf said in a televised interview on Friday that they had evidence of Turkey having carried out the deadly artillery attack on Zakho.
Nine civilians, all Arab tourists, were killed, and at least 23 were injured by a Turkish artillery attack in Zakho district, Duhok province, in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq (KRI) on 20 July.
“This act of aggression cannot be just brushed away. We will give the necessary response,” Al-Sahaf said.
“We have called on United Nations Security Council to hold an emergency meeting concerning Turkey’s attacks (…) Turkish forces have no business on Iraqi soil. They are not acting in coordination with the Iraqi government. The PKK [Kurdistan Workers’ Party] is Turkey’s problem, and they have exported this problem to Iraq.”
He continued:
“We will present a report to the UN Security Council on recent attacks by Turkey. We will present them with the facts. Iraq will not remain silent in the face of this aggression.”
Asked whether the Turkish military presence in Iraq was based on a treaty, Sahaf replied:
“There is no security treaty between Iraq and Turkey. This situation is disastrous for Iraq. The former regime made a deal with Turkey regarding PKK attacks, but that was not a treaty. It was an accord based on mutual understanding. Furthermore, no government has recognised or implemented it since 2003. This time Iraq will not make standard, ordinary requests, we will make tough demands.”
