Most of the deaths came in air strikes against the region, but earlier this week hundreds of Turkish soldiers also briefly marched into Iraqi Kurdistan in “hot pursuit” of rebels, sparking a multi-hour gunbattle.
Turkey’s military has been launching attacks off and on against northern Iraq for years, as has Iran. Both have cited the mountainous border region as a popular hiding place for Kurdish rebels from their own nations, and Turkey says that the US has been providing “intelligence” for the attacks.
Turkey’s clashes are with a group called the PKK, the “Kurdistan Workers’ Party,” which has regularly been launching attacks inside Turkey for years, but is also seen as expanding attacks in recent months. The group is officially listed as a terrorist organization by the US.
I'm guessing the Turks would be less than pleased if Israel armed the Kurds to the teeth. Perhaps Erdogan might find it harder to massacre them with relative impunity. In light of his brutal aggression towards Kurds and Armenians (and his nation's ongoing occupation of Cyprus), Erdogan's crocodile tears for the Gazans appear as opportunistic as they are phony.
Kurdistan is long overdue. It's time to liberate this long-oppressed people from their Turkish, Syrian, Iranian, and Iraqi tormentors (well, at least Saddam's gone). Viva Kurdistan!
Obviously if Israel had bombed a neighboring country, killing hundreds (and the death toll of Kurds murdered by Turks is actually in the tens of thousands) everyone would be up in arms. But apparently it's only a crime if Jews do it.
As far as the Kurds and Israelis go, they have an ancient and long-standing relationship, stemming from the establishing of a Jewish community in Kurdistan in the 8th century BC. When the Jews were fighting Roman imperialists in the first century AD, the Kurds sent them troops to help. But apparently today the Jews aren't allowed to have allies. Or the anti-semites wish to perpetuate the lie that everyone in the world, especially the mideast, hates the Jews. Which of course is nonsense.
It is time that Israel armed the Kurds with shoulder fired anti-aircraft missiles, night vision, anti-personnel mines, artillery with guided "smart" shells, and most important of all – nerve gas artillery. The Turks need to be taught a lesson for opposing Israel.