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Tensions mount along Turkey-Iraq border

DUBAI: Faced with mounting casualties due to cross-border attacks by Kurdish militants, Turkey is considering a full-scale offensive in northern Iraq.

With domestic pressure for military action spiralling after the deaths of Turkish troops, the government has decided to seek parliamentary approval for the offensive.

The militants belonging to the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) have established sanctuaries in the Kurdish dominated northern Iraq.

The PKK fighters have killed more than two dozen soldiers in the last two weeks. The decision to seek parliamentary approval was taken after Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan met party officials for more than three hours on Tuesday. Mr. Erdogan has also been holding talks with his security officials. The government could move Parliament for an approval as early as Wednesday, Turkish law makers were quoted as saying.

“Institutions concerned have been given the necessary orders and instructions to make all kinds of legal, economic and political preparations to end the presence of the terror organisation in a neighbouring country in the upcoming period, including if necessary a cross-border operation,” a statement issued after Mr. Erdogan met with security officials said.

Analysts point out that the government has been debating an incursion for more than a year.

Inaction following recent casualties could affect its credibility.

However, it was unclear whether the Turkish forces would advance into Iraq immediately after the vote or wait for the Americans and the Iraqi government to crackdown on the PKK sanctuaries.

Nevertheless, Turkish troops, backed by air power have already launched attacks in Turkey’s Sirnak province close to the border with Iraq. The troops were apparently targeting infiltration routes that Kurdish guerillas in the mountains might use.

Turkey has staged several incursions into northern Iraq between the late 1980s and 1997. Tens of thousands of troops and government backed village guards were involved in the 1997 operation. The Americans have asked Turkey to exercise restraint.

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