A Turkish invasion against mountainous regions in Iraqi Kurdistan held by the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) may be launched in the coming days, PKK Executive Committee Member Murat Karayılan has said. “We believe the enemy will receive the necessary response,” the veteran Kurdish militant leader added.
Karayılan noted that the PKK had been staging a successful resistance against the Turkish Armed Forces for the past three years, stating: “The Turkish state essentially wants to occupy the strategic lands of [Iraqi] Kurdistan by creating a buffer zone, and the guerilla is conducting a heroic resistance against this.” He identified particular areas of likely conflict, including Metina (Metîna), Bahar Hill, and the Khakurke-Khinere region.
The Kurdish leader drew a comparison with the famous historic siege of a rebellious Kurdish emirate, at Dimdim castle in the early 17th century, but added: “This resistance also represents something new in human history… A large army, with modern, high-tech weapons, has been stopped.” There was evidence that Turkey had been using banned chemical weapons in its campaign, Karayılan added, claiming that Turkey “releases chemical gas for hours on a single day,” as well as using drones, artillery and other technology.
In April, Turkey threatened an imminent, major military operation, with Turkish officials speaking of the PKK’s total eradication. Iraq’s National Security Council announced that the PKK would be banned from operating in the country, following a high-level security meeting with a Turkish delegation in Baghdad, notably attended by Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan and Iraqi Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein.
“Unfortunately, the border forces of the Iraqi Army… are defending the Turkish Army,” said Karayılan. “Maybe there is no other such instance in the world; in other words, a foreign army came and occupied their lands, you go and protect him with your military force, you stand guard over him!”
Turkey has also brought members of pro-government local militias recruited in Kurdish regions of Turkey, known as ‘village guards’, to fight in the conflict, Karayılan added. “These guards are legally obliged to defend their villages; but now, Turkey treats them as part of the army… the enemy wants [to use] the Kurd to defeat the Kurd. He doesn’t want to use his own soldiers at all. Of course, how successful they are in this is another matter…. Once again, I call on all village guards; if you stay in your village, no-one will attack you! We have stated this before. The fascist Turkish state wants to defeat Kurds with the blood of Kurds, and we must stand against these practices.”
Turkey regularly conducts ground offensives in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq (KRI) and has established several military bases on Iraqi soil to support its controversial cross-border operations. Turkey’s military activities have led to an increase in civilian casualties.
Ground offensives are common, with Turkey establishing military bases in Iraq to support these operations. The military campaigns target Kurdish guerrilla forces in specific areas such as Zap, Metina and Avashin (Avaşin). Air strikes are also frequent, with 6,000 reported between 2018 and June 2023. The most recent statistics show 428 strikes in civilian areas over a two-month period.
