Erdogan announced the cessation of military operations in the two countries soon
Last Updated on July 15, 2024 6:45 am
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has announced the immediate end of military operations against the pro-Kurdish PKK fighters in Iraq and Syria. Al Jazeera reported that he made the announcement while speaking to graduates of the military academy on Saturday.
Erdogan said, we will end the operation in northern Iraq very soon. Kurdish forces no longer have the capability to attack inside our borders.
The Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) is completely trapped in Iraq and Syria, he told the young military graduates. The Turkish forces outnumbered them everywhere. We will also complete the collapse points of our southern border security belt with Syria.
Türkiye, the United States and the European Union (EU) have designated the PKK as a terrorist group. Members of this group took up arms against the Turkish state in 1984.
Since 2016, Ankara has also been conducting a series of ground operations to expel Kurdish forces from the border areas in northern Syria.
Turkish forces launched military operation Claw-Lock in April 2022 to secure the Turkish border with northern Iraq. Ankara claims that Kurdish separatists are attacking their country from this border region.
Turkish-Kurdish conflict
The conflict between Türkiye and the Kurds has a long history. Kurds make up 15 to 20 percent of Turkey’s population. For generations, the Turkish authorities have followed a strict policy towards the Kurds. During the rise of Kurdish protests in the 1920s and 1930s, many Kurds resettled.
Kurdish names and clothing were banned. The use of the Kurdish language is prohibited. Even the separate ethnic identity of the Kurds is denied. The Kurds were called “mountain Turks” at that time.
In 1978, Abdullah Ocalan formed the PKK, whose main demand was the creation of an independent state within Turkey. That organization started armed struggle after 6 years. More than 40,000 people have been killed so far and millions of Kurds have been displaced.
In the 1990s, the PKK moved away from independence and demanded cultural and political autonomy. After secret talks in 2013, they reached an agreement on a ceasefire.
The ceasefire fell apart in July 2015 when a suicide bombing in the Kurdish-dominated town of Suru near the Syrian border killed 33 youth activists. IS was blamed for the bombing. At the time, the PKK accused the Turkish authorities of aiding the attack and attacked the Turkish army and police.
Following this, the Turkish government launched a campaign against the PKK and IS. According to Turkey, the YPG and PYD are former PKK affiliates and are carrying out separatist activities through armed coups.