Some Turkish politicians speculate!...

Similarities between PKK, Israel attacks raise suspicions

The common characteristics of an assault carried out by the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) and an Israeli attack on a humanitarian aid convoy in international waters have raised suspicions over whether the two incidents are related.

A rocket attack by terrorists on a naval base killed seven soldiers and wounded six others in the southern province of Hatay’s İskenderun district on Monday shortly after midnight. After a couple of hours, Israeli commandoes attacked a six-ship convoy carrying hundreds of pro-Palestinian activists on an aid mission to the Gaza Strip and killed nine people and injured dozens.

Some Turkish politicians have speculated over a possible relationship between the two deadly incidents. “We don’t think the incident [İskenderun attack] was coincidental,” Justice and Development Party (AK Party) Deputy Chairman Hüseyin Çelik said, speaking to reporters at AK Party headquarters in Ankara on Monday.

“As the AK Party, we condemn the incidents strongly. Israel has torn down Gaza. They do not even let construction materials in. This will be a black mark on the history of humanity. An attack was carried out at our military unit in İskenderun. We condemn this, too. We do not think that it is a coincidence that these two attacks took place at the same time,” Çelik said.

The newly elected chairman of the Republican People’s Party (CHP), Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu, also said the similarity between the incidents is meaningful. Speaking at a press conference held at party headquarters on Monday, Kılıçdaroğlu recalled that some circles are concerned about whether the İskenderun attack is related to Israel. “We feel deeply sorry about the incident in İskenderun. We must pay attention to the killings of seven soldiers. At a time when the Israeli army continues military operations, it is meaningful that such an incident took place in Turkey,” he said.

Felicity Party (SP) leader Numan Kurtulmuş reacted harshly during a press conference held at the İstanbul branch of the party. While pointing out the timing of both incidents, Kurtulmuş said he hoped the attacks were not related to each other. “Our soldiers were attacked in Turkey. I hope it was a coincidence that Israel began to attack the ship after a brutal attack on a Turkish Naval Forces base in İskenderun. May God bless the souls of those martyrs who died in this vicious attack,” he said.

01 June 2010, Tuesday

TODAY’S ZAMAN İSTANBUL