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PAM ! Pam-para,pam-pam ! PAM ! PAM !
 

May 25, 2010

Kill a Turk, AND RELAX !...

Red = Me

Turkish planes bomb targets in Northern Iraq: Turkish media

ANKARA (Reuters) ? Turkish military aircraft bombed Kurdish rebel targets in northern Iraq in an operation said be the largest in one-and-half years, Turkish broadcasters and an army source said on Thursday.

The raid by some 20 planes hit nearly 50 targets i

n northern Iraq's Zab valley area, the NTV television channel said. The state Anatolian news agency also reported an aerial operation against the militants in northern Iraq.

The Anatolian said "a terrorist group" was spotted ap

proaching the Turkish border and the aircraft attacked the group in an operation lasting for an hour.

An official at Turkey's army headquarters in Ankara declined to comment: "We have nothing to say on this at the moment."

A senior army source in the southeast said a second aerial bombardment was continuing against the PKK targets in the evening hours.

The source said Thursday's raid was the largest over the last one-and-half years and targeted the PKK underground shelters in addition to rebel groups in movement. There was no information on possible P

KK casualties.

On May 8, Turkish army forces pursued Kurdish guerrillas into northern Iraq and struck suspected targets with helicopter gunships and drones, killing at least five rebels.

Clashes in Turkey's southeast typically become more frequent in spring and summer due to more favorable weather conditions for the guerrillas.

The Iraqi government has protested against Turkish

land incursions aimed at rooting out the PKK. In February 2008, the military staged a ground incursion with 10,000 troops. It also regularly bombards suspected PKK targets from the air.

The PKK took up arms against the Turkish state in 1984 in a conflict that has claimed 40,000 lives.

The rebels, who are mainly based in Iraqi Kurdistan, say they are fighting for greater political rights for Turkey's estimated 15 million Kurds. The United States and the European Union both label the PKK a terrorist organization.


Hasip Thu May 20, 2010 10:24 am PDT

We will not leave one single kurd alive, whe ther in Turkey or outside. If kurds messwith us, the world will find about kurds from history books and museums. We tell everyone, including the jews, greeks, armenians, blacks and any other degenerate peoples to stay away from Turkey...or else..

Updates

  • Middle East Newsline
  • May 24, 2010
ANKARA [MENL] -- The Turkish Air Force has been using an Israeli-origin
long-range unmanned aerial vehicle for strikes on Kurdish insurgents in
Iraq.
Full Article - Buy Now


Monday, 24 May 2010, 01:25 EDT

Iraqi Kurds condemned air strikes and shellfire by Turkey and Iran

Iraqi Kurds on Friday condemned air strikes and shellfire by Turkey and Iran on Turkish-Kurdish rebels based in northern Iraq as violations of Iraqi sovereignty.

Iranian forces shelled border regions and Turkish war planes caused "huge" casualties, according to a statement from the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG), which runs northern Iraq autonomously from Baghdad.

Turkish military sources said Thursday's attacks on the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), an outlawed Turkish-Kurdish group largely based in north Iraq, were the biggest such operation in over a year and had killed four guerrillas and wounded more.

"The presidency of the Iraq Kurdistan region condemns these attacks on the border regions, and at the same time considers this a violation and aggression on the sovereignty of the Iraqi state and demands its immediate cessation," the statement said.

KRG President Massoud Barzani had been expected to visit Ankara as relations between Turkey and Iraqi Kurds improve, but Thursday's operations could revive tension between the two.

The PKK took up arms against the Turkish state in 1984 to fight for an ethnic homeland for Kurds in southeast Turkey and more than 40,000 people have died in the conflict.

The rebels, who the PKK says number 7,000, have scaled back their demands and now want greater cultural and political rights for Turkey's estimated 14 million ethnic Kurds.

Turkey has called on Barzani to do more to combat the PKK, but Iraqi Kurds are reluctant to risk destabilizing northern Iraq, which has escaped much of the violence seen in the rest of the country since the 2003 U.S. invasion.

Turkish military sources said Thursday's attacks had been aimed at underground shelters and rebels moving on foot in the remote, mountainous part of northern Iraq occupied by the PKK, straddling Iraq's borders with Iran and Turkey.

Turkey and Iran have in recent years shared intelligence and coordinated attacks on the PKK and its Iranian offshoot, the Party of Free Life of Kurdistan (PJAK).


Gaza aid flotilla to set sail for confrontation with Israel

Israelis promise to stop eight ships carrying 10,000 tonnes of aid, 800 activists and politicians from more than 40 countries

Gaza flotilla Mavi Marmara

The Turkish ferry Mavi Marmara is one of the eight boats expected to set sail for Gaza in the next few days. Photograph: Reuters

A flotilla of eight boats carrying thousands of tonnes of construction materials, medical equipment and other aid is preparing to sail to Gaza in the next few days, setting the scene for a confrontation with Israel which has vowed to prevent the ships breaking the blockade on the Palestinian territory.

Three cargo ships and five passenger vessels plan to meet up in international waters between Cyprus and Gaza Strip before heading towards Gaza City. The Israeli military is expected to stop the flotilla and divert it to the Israeli port of Ashdod.

One of the organisers of the flotilla, which includes three vessels from Turkey, is IHH, a humanitarian aid group supported by Ankara. Diplomatic relations between Turkey and Israel have deteriorated since the Israelis launched a three-week war on Gaza in 2008-09. An attempt to block the flotilla is likely to increase tensions between the two countries. The Turkish prime minister, Racep Tayyip Erdogan, has called on Israel to avoid this be allowing the boats through.

"This could make relations between Israel and Turkey more complicated," said Yigal Palmor, an Israeli foreign ministry spokesman.

On board the ships are 10,000 tonnes of cargo and about 700-800 activists and politicians from more than 40 countries. The cargo includes building materials, medical supplies and paper for schools. One boat is carrying a complete dental surgery including drills. Crayons and chocolate are also on board for Gazan children. The cargo has been paid for by donations.

"We're trying to break the blockade of the Gaza Strip and tell the world that Israel has no right to starve 1.5 million Palestinians," said Greta Berlin, of the Free Gaza Movement, another organiser of the flotilla. "We are bringing in vitally needed supplies so the people of Gaza can rebuild their infrastructure."

Israel has imposed an economic blockade on Gaza since the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas seized control almost three years ago. Nearly all exports and imports are banned and only a limited supply of food and medical aid is allowed in.

Free Gaza has organised six previous aid boats to the Palestinian territory, the last three of which were blocked from reaching their destination by the Israeli military. This is the biggest attempt to take aid to Gaza. "The previous boats were making a statement ‑ these boats will be making a real impact," said Berlin.

The Israeli navy enforces a 20-nautical mile (23-mile) closure of the sea off Gaza, which has had a devastating impact on its fishing industry. "The boats will not be allowed to enter Gaza territorial waters," said Palmor. "This is a territory in a self-declared state of war with Israel. There can be no uncontrolled transportation in or out of Gaza."

Berlin accused Israel of "sabre-rattling" in the hope that the flotilla plan will be abandoned. "They have no right to control Gaza waters unless they want to admit they are occupying Gaza," she said. "They are the illegal entity, not us." Israel claims it is acting within international law.

The Turkish ferry Mavi Marmara was today docked in Antalya, Turkey, along with two cargo ships, waiting to be joined by boats from Greece. "We will all go together in the next couple of days," said Hosain Orut, of the IHH.

John Ging, head of the main UN agency in Gaza, urged more ships carrying aid to be sent: "We believe that Israel would not stop these vessels because the sea is open, and many human rights organisations have been successful in previous similar steps, and proved that breaking the siege on Gaza is possible."

Earlier this week, a UN report said that three-quarters of the damage caused to Gaza's infrastructure during the three-week military conflict has not been repaired because of the blockade.

Mark Regev, the Israeli prime minister's spokesman, said: "It is strange that human rights activists are acting as apologists for a regime that is brutally repressing human rights. Hamas oppresses women, gays and Christians, has crushed independent media and destroyed all political opposition." He added that 15,000 tonnes of aid was allowed into Gaza every week.

Dozens of boats manned by Israeli citizens took the water at the weekend in protest at the aid flotilla.

The boats

• Four cargo ships

• Four passenger ships

• Coming from Turkey, Greece, Ireland

On board

• 700 to 800 peace activists and MPs from more than 40 countries

• 10,000 tonnes of supplies, including:

• Cement

• Generators

• Water purification equipment

• 20 tonnes of paper for schools

• Prefabricated homes

• $1m (£700,000) of medical equipment, including: CAT scanners' wheelchairs, crutches

• A complete dental surgery, including drills and a chair

• Sports equipment, including footballs and basketballs

• Crayons and pens

Chocolate

Paid for

• By donations, ranging from $1.39 from an individual in Brunei to €300,000 (£256,000) collected in Malaysia


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