Kurdish separatist rebels said on Friday they were crossing back into Turkey to target politicians and police after Ankara said it was preparing to attack them in the mountains of northern Iraq.
However, the US military said it had not seen any activity to suggest an imminent Turkish offensive against Kurdish rebels in northern Iraq.
As regional tensions rose, Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan cautioned that relations between Ankara and Washington were in danger over a US congressional resolution branding as genocide massacres of Armenians by Ottoman Turks in 1915.
PHOTO: AP
Washington harbors growing concerns about the possibility of a major Turkish military incursion to crush Kurdish rebels seeking a homeland in eastern Turkey. US officials fear such an action could destabilize a relatively peaceful area of Iraq.
Ankara recalled its ambassador from the US for consultations after the US vote, which was strongly condemned in predominantly Muslim but secular Turkey.
"We don't need anyone's advice on northern Iraq and the operation to be carried out there," Erdogan told a cheering crowd in Istanbul, after saying that the US "came tens of thousands of kilometers and attacked Iraq without asking anyone's permission."
Referring to relations with the US and the Armenian resolution, Erdogan, using a Turkish idiom usually employed to describe relations, said: "Where the rope is worn thin, may it break off." He did not elaborate.
"All prospects look bad ... and relations with the US have already gone down the drain," said Semih Idiz, a Turkish commentator.
"If Turkey sets its mind on something, whether wrong or right it will do it. The invasion of Cyprus in 1974 is a good example," he said, referring to a Turkish invasion of northern Cyprus which drew US condemnation and sanctions.
A statement by the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) could increase domestic pressure on Ankara to launch a big offensive that Washington fears could have ramifications in the region.
Meanwhile, a US military official, speaking on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the situation, said on Friday that any offensive by Turkey would likely involve airstrikes and mortar fire.
But so far, the official said, there has been no evidence of Turkish soldiers massing along the border, and the number of troops there now is relatively common.
US military officials have said they believe they will get some type of warning if the Turks launch an incursion into Iraq against the PKK. For years, the US has routinely had military representatives with the Turkish armed forces.
The US has consistently argued against a Turkish offensive, pushing instead for a broader diplomatic solution between Iraq and Turkey over the PKK problem.
But of equal concern is what impact the congressional resolution will have on US military supply routes that have been used recently to move much-needed armored vehicles to troops in Iraq.
While US military officials said that they have seen no indications of repercussions yet from the Turks, the Pentagon has dusted off contingency plans that would reroute supplies and arms if transportation through Turkey or across its airspace is restricted. There is more "focused planning" as a result of the congressional action, the official said.
One key impact could be on the delivery of mine-resistant ambush-protected vehicles that the Pentagon has been trying to rush to Iraq. The vehicles give troops better protection against roadside bombs.
Officials are looking at plans to reroute those deliveries around Turkey if needed. Other supply routes -- including those used during the ramp up to the invasion of Iraq in 2003 -- could involve Kuwait and Jordan.
BACKLASH: The National Party quit its decades-long partnership with the Liberal Party after their election loss to center-left Labor, which won a historic third term Australia’s National Party has split from its conservative coalition partner of more than 60 years, the Liberal Party, citing policy differences over renewable energy and after a resounding loss at a national election this month. “Its time to have a break,” Nationals leader David Littleproud told reporters yesterday. The split shows the pressure on Australia’s conservative parties after Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s center-left Labor party won a historic second term in the May 3 election, powered by a voter backlash against US President Donald Trump’s policies. Under the long-standing partnership in state and federal politics, the Liberal and National coalition had shared power
A Croatian town has come up with a novel solution to solve the issue of working parents when there are no public childcare spaces available: pay grandparents to do it. Samobor, near the capital, Zagreb, has become the first in the country to run a “Grandmother-Grandfather Service,” which pays 360 euros (US$400) a month per child. The scheme allows grandparents to top up their pension, but the authorities also hope it will boost family ties and tackle social isolation as the population ages. “The benefits are multiple,” Samobor Mayor Petra Skrobot told reporters. “Pensions are rather low and for parents it is sometimes
CONTROVERSY: During the performance of Israel’s entrant Yuval Raphael’s song ‘New Day Will Rise,’ loud whistles were heard and two people tried to get on stage Austria’s JJ yesterday won the Eurovision Song Contest, with his operatic song Wasted Love triumphing at the world’s biggest live music television event. After votes from national juries around Europe and viewers from across the continent and beyond, JJ gave Austria its first victory since bearded drag performer Conchita Wurst’s 2014 triumph. After the nail-biting drama as the votes were revealed running into yesterday morning, Austria finished with 436 points, ahead of Israel — whose participation drew protests — on 357 and Estonia on 356. “Thank you to you, Europe, for making my dreams come true,” 24-year-old countertenor JJ, whose
A documentary whose main subject, 25-year-old photojournalist Fatima Hassouna, was killed in an Israeli airstrike in Gaza weeks before it premiered at Cannes stunned viewers into silence at the festival on Thursday. As the cinema lights came back on, filmmaker Sepideh Farsi held up an image of the young Palestinian woman killed with younger siblings on April 16, and encouraged the audience to stand up and clap to pay tribute. “To kill a child, to kill a photographer is unacceptable,” Farsi said. “There are still children to save. It must be done fast,” the exiled Iranian filmmaker added. With Israel
RSS