Turkey Launches Unilateral Northern Iraq Attacks Against Kurd Fighters ...

Today, 'This Old Brit' and Richard bring you BIG and OFFICIAL news - direct from:

The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs:

*** IRAQ: Hundreds flee homes as Turkish forces battle Kurdish fighters ***

SULAIMANIYAH, 21 June 2007 (IRIN) - Hundreds of Iraqi Kurds have been forced to flee their homes after up to 30,000 Turkish soldiers massed on the Iraqi-Turkish border and launched attacks against Kurdish fighters, Iraqi border police say.

Local aid agencies said Kurdish fighters had prevented them from entering the villages, which were being targeted.

“The bombardments have forced hundreds to abandon their homes and leave for safer areas. Some houses were looted by Kurdish fighters, according to witnesses in the area,” said Rastgo Muhammad Barsaz, spokesman for the non-governmental organisation Kurdistan Campaign to Help Victims of War.

“Dashati Takhe village, on the border near Zakho, is one of the most affected areas. We have been informed of civilian causalities but we don’t know how many, as we are being denied access to the area. But by telephone, civilians have told us they are short of food and water,” Barsaz said.

Fear of Turkish invasion

In response to recent attacks, including a bombing in Ankara in May that killed eight people, Turkey expanded its force along the border, deploying additional artillery and dozens of tanks. Iraqi border police say Turkey has 20,000-30,000 soldiers along its border with Iraq, and has set up a special security zone that restricts movement in the area.

The bombardments have forced hundreds to abandon their homes and leave for safer areas.

Iraqi Kurdish villagers living near the Turkish border fear a Turkish invasion similar to that of 1997, when large numbers of Turkish forces crossed the border to fight the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), which wants an independent Kurdistan carved out of northern Iraq as well as parts of Iran and Turkey.

Turkey says the PKK is using mountain hideouts and friendly villages in northern Iraq to train and re-supply its fighters who operate mainly in Turkey.

Read all about this remarkable (and little reported) recent M.E. escalation/development, right here.

Hat tip to Erdla of 'Gorilla's Guides' for alerting us to the latest.

Now, we know nobody likes a smart arse but it's not as if we haven't been warning what's coming.

Not just once either --- but on (at least) three separate occasions of late.
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