Since late October 2007, Turkey has been carrying out cross-border military operations, bombardments and air-raids in Kurdistan, Iraq. Turkey has attempted to justify these operations under the pretext of its ongoing fight against the PKK.

This latest KHRP Briefing Paper discusses these developments, demonstrating how the attacks should be understood in the broader context of Turkey’s long-standing strategic goals in countering regional Kurdish autonomy, goals it shares with Iran and Syria. The paper refers to recent KHRP research in the region showing that Turkey’s operations have been in gross violation of the Geneva conventions, causing extensive harm to civilian life and property in parts of northern Iraq with little actual impact on the capabilities of the PKK. The paper also discusses the international reaction to the attacks, and calls upon the US, EU and all other parties with an interest in maintaining stability in the region to condemn the attacks and urge Turkey to pursue constructive and non-military measures to secure peace in the region.