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Turks & Kurds

Tension between the groups has been a fact of life in Turkey since the founding of the Republic. Now the Iraq War is upsetting an already precarious equilibrium

To the Turks, they're "Mountain Turks," but the Kurds view themselves as a distinctive ethnic group with only geographic ties to the country in which they live. Their decades-long struggle for an independent Kurdistan on Turkey's eastern border has at times turned deadly, claiming 30,000 lives in the early 1980s. Though the groups have taken steps toward conciliation in recent years, the recent disruption caused by the Iraq War has created a de facto Kurdistan in northern Iraq, once again igniting the hopes of Kurds—and the fears of Turks.

Stories

Stories 21 - 40 of 54

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November 2007
- Bush Offers Turkish PM Intel on Kurds
  
  Associated Press | Nov 5, 07 8:12 PM CST
  
  (Newser) - President Bush and Turkish PM Recep Tayyip Erdogan emerged in agreement from a Washington meeting today, with Erdogan declaring, “I’m happy,” after Bush offered him access to US intel to track Kurdish rebels operating out of Northern Iraq. Bush vowed to share "real time" information and keep US and Turkish militaries in contact. "The PKK is an enemy of Turkey, a free Iraq, and the United States of America," he said. More »
- Rebel Kurds Free Turkish Soldiers
  
  Reuters | Nov 4, 07 4:53 PM CST
  
  (Newser) - Kurds freed eight Turkish soldiers today, a move that may cut the odds of a Turkish invasion into northern Iraq, Reuters reports. But Turkey still wants Kurdish rebels arrested and training camps shut down. Britain's defense secretary called the release "a significant move," but added, "We need to see concrete measures taken by the Iraqi Kurdish officials to curtail the activities of the [Kurdish rebel group] PKK." More »
- Baghdad Vows to Curb Kurds
  
  BBC | Nov 3, 07 4:36 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - Iraq vowed today to “chase and arrest” Kurds who are striking Turkey from northern Iraq, the BBC reports. "We will co-operate with our neighbors in defeating this threat," Maliki told diplomats at international talks in Istanbul. Baghdad showed its muscle by shutting a Kurdish political office, but analysts say that Maliki can’t curb the rebels without help from officials in Kurdistan. More »
- Rice Pledges US Assist to Turkey
  
  Associated Press | Nov 2, 07 6:04 AM CDT
  
  (Newser) - Heading to talks in Ankara today, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice told reporters the Kurdish militants who have attacked Turkey from northern Iraq are a "common enemy" of the US and Turkey, and promised that the US will deliver an "effective" strategy against Kurdish militants if Ankara holds off its threat to invade Iraq to rout the rebels, Reuters reports. More »
October 2007
- Kurdish Clashes Deep in Turkey Kill 15
  
  Associated Press | Oct 28, 07 12:15 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - Turkish soldiers killed 15 Kurdish guerrillas today in Tunceli province, several hundred miles from the area bordering Iraq where most of the clashes with Kurdish separatists have taken place, the AP reports. Iraqi-Turkish talks aimed at reconciling the escalating conflict collapsed before the weekend, and sources say that PM Recep Tayyip Erdogan's visit to Washington on November 5 is Turkey's last stab at diplomacy. More »
- Turkey Masses Troops, Ready to Invade
  
  Reuters | Oct 27, 07 6:17 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - Turkey will invade Northern Iraq “the moment an operation is needed,” Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan vowed after talks with Baghdad crumbled last night. Ankara has up to 100,000 troops on the Iraqi border, backed by tanks and fighter plans, ready to strike roughly 3,000 Kurdish rebels. The US and Britain oppose any incursion, but Erdogan said, “We don’t need to ask anyone’s permission.” More »
- US Forces Will Do 'Nothing' About Kurds
  
  Associated Press | Oct 26, 07 6:34 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - Despite Turkish calls for action, the top US military commander in northern Iraq said today that he intended to do "absolutely nothing" to counteract strikes against Turkey by Kurdish militants, the AP reports. The blunt assertion is consistent with the Bush administration's desire to keep US forces out of the conflict and see it resolved diplomatically. More »
- Turkey Demands US Action on Kurdish Rebels
  
  New York Times | Oct 25, 07 2:50 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - As top Iraqis urged his country to quell Kurdish rebels with nonmilitary action, Turkish PM Recep Erdogan demanded that the US act to stop those rebels from threatening his country from northern Iraq, the New York Times reports. “We have a disturbance," Erdogan said. "What kind of disturbance did the United States have with Iraq?" More »
- Turkish Sorties Into Iraq Kill 34 Kurdish Fighters
  
  Guardian (UK) | Oct 24, 07 2:16 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - Turkish incursions into northern Iraq have killed 34 Kurdish fighters over the past few days, and the Turks today targeted positions along the border with airstrikes, Reuters reports. Some 300 troops have crossed into Iraq by 6 miles, and planes have struck as far as 13 miles. So far, though, Turkey has held off on any large-scale invasion feared by the US and Iraq, the Guardian reports. More »
- Iraq Promises to Help Turkey Quell Kurd Militants
  
  New York Times | Oct 23, 07 12:01 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - Urging diplomacy, Iraq today pledged to help Turkey resolve border violence by Kurdish militants based in northern Iraq. Turkey kept the diplomatic wheels turning but wouldn't rule out military action to quell the PKK and rejected its offer of a ceasefire. Iraq’s foreign minister vowed to “actively help Turkey overcome this menace” by limiting militant movement and finances, the Times reports. More »
- Turkey Pledges to Wait for Talks Before Striking Back at Kurds
  
  Reuters | Oct 22, 07 6:38 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - Turkish leaders say they will hold off on military action against Kurdish rebels in northern Iraq while the US and other nations try diplomacy to calm things down, Reuters reported. Tensions continued to soar, however, as Turkey massed troops at the Iraqi border and protesters throughout the country demanded action. President Bush said he would urge Iraq to stop Kurdish attacks on Turkish soldiers. More »
- Turkish Troops Said Missing
  
  Associated Press | Oct 22, 07 7:28 AM CDT
  
  (Newser) - A Turkish convoy with dozens of military vehicles joined tens of thousands of troops massed on the Iraqi border today, as the military announced that eight soldiers were missing, in addition to 12 killed, in an ambush by Kurdish militants early yesterday morning. The Turks shelled Kurdish camps over the border for nearly 24 hours in retaliation for the attacks. Protesters across the country demanded tough action and opposition leaders called for PM Recep Tayyip Erdogan to resign. More »
- Kurdish Rebels Kill 12 Turkish Soldiers
  
  Reuters | Oct 21, 07 11:51 AM CDT
  
  (Newser) - Kurdish rebels killed 12 Turkish troops and wounded 16 more in a surprise attack in Turkey today, Reuters reports, four days after parliament voted to allow military strikes against the Kurdistan Workers' Party in northern Iraq. Now, the pressure is on for the Turkish government to take decisive military action, and PM Tayyip Erdogan has called crisis talks to determine a response. More »
- Turkey OKs Strikes in Iraq
  
  New York Times | Oct 17, 07 10:40 AM CDT
  
  (Newser) - The Turkish Parliament today authorized its prime minister to send the country's military into Iraq to combat Kurdish separatists who have been accused of raids on Turkish soil. The 526-19 vote gives year-long permission for military strikes across the border, CNN reports. With 60,000 Turkish troops amassed in the area and some shells fired into Iraq this weekend, Baghdad scrambled for a diplomatic solution and President Bush urged Turkey, again, not to send troops into Iraq. More »
- Armenian Genocide Vote Withering in Turkish Heat
  
  Politico | Oct 17, 07 6:54 AM CDT
  
  (Newser) - Members of Congress are backing off a resolution that would classify Turkish purges of Armenians as genocide. The bill's approval by a committee last week infuriated the Turks, who called home their ambassador and have threatened to forbid US military use of Turkish airspace and bases to support Iraqi operations if the resolution passes. Turkey is also close to attacking Kurdish rebels in Iraq. More »
- Turkey's Threats Send Oil to Record High Near $88
  
  Bloomberg | Oct 16, 07 8:32 AM CDT
  
  (Newser)