MURAT KARAYILAN CONGRATULATES THE GUERRILLAS

Karayilan congratulates the guerrillas.

KCK Executive Council Chairman Murat Karayilan said that HPG guerrillas defeated the Turkish army and congratulated the Zap-Zagros forces command and fighters, who showed great resistance.

KCK Executive Council Chairman Murat Karayilan's message:

1. Undoubtedly history is cruel; it will note the invincible resistance of the Apocu guerrillas against barbaric imperialist powers. Our movement, which developed the defensive war based on its own power, will show everyone that our people are honorable, self-respecting, and of moral character.

2. We have to know that we must take our guerrilla struggle to a further stage against the forces that want to annihilate our leadership by poisoning, and want our people to be weak-willed. For that reason, we must never forget that we are responsible for striving for greater competency and more successes by gaining power from the recent success and striving to overcome weaknesses.

3. We know that it requires more creativity, sacrifice, and responsibility to walk toward greater successes, to be a good comrade of Leader Apo and the gallant martyrs. By basing yourself in these practices, in a strong morale and in dedication, to show the invincibility of the Apocu guerrillas to the whole world and to attain success on a practical level, I believe you will deepen yourselves [in the way of the Apocu guerrilla] and will have greater successes.

On this basis, I greet all of you one more time and send you my regards.

TO THE VICTORS, CONGRATULATIONS

"If a feat of arms such as this had been performed by the U.S. Marines or the French Foreign Legion, they'd have relics of it preserved in a glass case in a museum."
~ Gordon Taylor.

The Turkish army is in full retreat and is leaving South Kurdistan.

Greatest of congratulations to the freedom fighters of the People's Defense Forces (HPG)!

Şehîd Namirin! Bijî Serok Apo!

Some thoughts on the Kurdish victory, from Gordon Taylor:

After a week, the outcome of the battle between the PKK and the Turkish Armed Forces (TSK) is still in doubt. The mountains are sealed, and no independent observers can get in. The Turks claim well over 200 "terrorists" have been killed in the fighting, including the PKK leader who planned the 21 October raid near Daglica (Oramar) which left 12 Turkish soldiers dead. The PKK responded that this was a lie. This mythical "commander" did not exist, they said, and he was certainly not dead. They claim to have lost five guerrillas in the fighting, and they have posted their names on their website. In their latest communiques they claim that the number of Turkish dead has gone over 100. The TSK, they say, is withdrawing toward the Zab. One of their leaders, Murat Karayilan, has sent his congratulations to the "heroes" of the battle. In other news, the PKK claims to have ambushed a TSK column in another sector.

One thing is certain: the Turkish Army has not rolled to some overwhelming victory. In fact, they are under pressure from the Americans (who supply their intelligence and AWACS planes), as well as the Iraqis, to get out. Remember, this is guerrilla warfare. If the PKK survives, they win. If the Turkish Army does not win, it loses. The PKK appears to have done more than survive. The TSK has had a week to do its worst. They have sent in their elite mountain commandos, the toughest fighters they have, men infamous for their practice of cutting off the ears of their fallen enemy, soaking them overnight in Coca-Cola, and using the remaining cartilage as key rings. [see Nadire Mater, "Voices from the Front"] They have hit the PKK with F-16s, with heavy artillery, with bombs guided by American and Israeli intelligence, with helicopter gunships and aerial drones. And still the men (and women) of the PKK have withstood the assault. If a feat of arms such as this had been performed by the U.S. Marines or the French Foreign Legion, they'd have relics of it preserved in a glass case in a museum.

Serkeftin!

TURKISH ARMY IN RETREAT FROM ZAP

"Always the same clichéd words, we always say the same. Children go, bloody tears, funerals…I don’t share your opinion. Why do we take part in the game? Alright, the country can’t be separated, but…Should all mothers just give birth and bury their children, is that it?"
~ Bülent Ersoy.

HPG has posted the names of its hero şehîds from the Zap battles, as follows (code name first, followed by birth name):

AYHAN KIZILKAYA
ALİ IŞIK
1977 SİİRT PERVARİ

BARAN URFA
MEHMET MENAP
1978 URFA HİLVAN

TOFAN KOBANİ
ALİ ABBAS
1985 KOBANİ

ERDAL İSYAN
YILMAZ AYDIN
1980 DİYARBAKIR-ÇERMİK

CAHİT KOBANİ
IBRAHİM AHMET
KATILIM 1993

Photos will be posted later.

In a statement from HPG's headquarters command dated 27 February, HPG denies claims made in Turkish media that wounded guerrilla forces are being treated in hospitals in Zaxo and Duhok. HPG treats its own wounded, which is consistent with the fact that HPG has its own medical personnel and facilities.

In a statement from HPG's media communications center on 26 February, we learn that, between the hours of 1700 - 1800 hours, a mobile TSK unit was ambushed in the area of Şamke village near Doçka hill (Çemço area), with the result of three Turkish soldiers killed and two wounded. In another ambush operation at 2300 hours, also in the area of Şamke village, Şirin hill, 15 Turkish soldiers were killed.

As of the seventh day of the war, these operations bring the total number of Turkish soldiers killed to 108, and the number wounded to 18. One should bear in mind that these numbers are those counted by HPG guerrillas on the ground.

TSK is now in retrograde operations--retreat-- from the Zap region because it has been denied access to key terrain by HPG forces, according to a statement from HPG's headquarters command and carried in Yeni Özgür Politika today. Furthermore and contrary to reports in Turkish media, HPG's commanders are in charge of their units and executing operations against the TSK invader.

I don't know why Turkish media would report anything about HPG commanders anyway, since the week before the war began, it reported that all the HPG commanders were either poisoned or had their heads cut off . . . Due to "infighting," don't you know.

Gordon Taylor at Progressive Historians has been following the situation and has opines on it in his recent post. Pay attention to the following (emphasis Gordon's):

(4) Perhaps most telling of all, the website of the Euphrates News Agency (Firat News), which is closely linked to the PKK, has come under attack from hackers since they first broke the story of the Cobra helicopter's downing. They now require a manual username and password to access the site. This tends to happen whenever Kurdish websites deliver bad news. Firat News, it should be said, has a remarkable network of informants. Any plane that takes off from the Diyarbakir air base is almost immediately noted on their news service. They reported when a column of American military vehicles left Mosul on Saturday and headed for Dohuk, the Kurdish town on the Turkish border, where Turkish tanks are confronting the peshmerga forces. They've noted just recently that an avalanche in the gorge of the river Zab has stalled a military supply column heading for Cukurca, the border town which is a staging area for the ongoing invasion. They get reports seemingly from the back of beyond, noting every Turkish troop movement they can see, every road to which access is suddenly denied. Whether one believes all of their stories is not the point. The point is, the Turks are going into battle next to a populace that is more than ready to spy on their every move and report it to the PKK news service.

Exactly. The network is enormous and it's against the Turks.

Hevallo's running the gamut from disgust with international media to advice about direct political action to joy at the TSK's retreat, so check out the latest.

In the meantime, there's been a bit of an antiwar controversy on the live Turkish TV program Popstar Alaturka, and charges are now being processed against a famous transsexual singer for speaking out loud what many Turks are already thinking. From Bianet:

It took a judge from a national popstar competition, “Popstar Alaturka”, to say what many people may think secretly.

Bülent Ersoy, a colourful transsexual singer, banned from performing on stage after the military coup in the 1980s, and now mostly in the magazine headlines for her outfits, young husbands and cosmetic surgery, expressed her opposition to the current cross-border operations in Northern Iraq on live TV on Sunday night (24 February).

[ . . . ]

What was it she said on live TV?

“If I had given birth to a child and someone sitting at a desk had said ‘You will do this, he will do that’, and I would have buried my child, would I accept that?”

This was greeted with applause from the studio audience. Ersoy continued:

“I cannot know exactly what it means to have a child. I am not a mother and will never be able to be one. But I am a human being; and as a human being, to bury them…I may not know how these mother’s hearts are breaking, but mothers understand.”

She continued, “This is not a war under normal conditions. It is written down and people are forced to play along. There is intrigue, and that is hard to cope with.”

[ . . . ]

Another jury member, singer Ebru Gündes, answered in a well-worn phrase, “Let Allah grant everyone the happiness of being a soldier's mother. May I have a glorious son and send him to the military,” to which Ersoy replied, “...and then you get his dead body back.”

Gündes answered, “Martyrs don’t die, the country can’t be separated,” to which Ersoy said:

“Always the same clichéd words, we always say the same. Children go, bloody tears, funerals…I don’t share your opinion. Why do we take part in the game? Alright, the country can’t be separated, but…Should all mothers just give birth and bury their children, is that it?”

[ . . . ]

Ahmet Türk, parliamentary group leader of the DTP reacted to Ersoy’s words by saying, “A singer expresses this attitude, but no politician or intellectual has been as brave as Bülent Ersoy.”

A piece of Turkish trivia: Gray Wolf moron Ebru Gündes threw a fork at Ahmet Kaya when he announced his decision to record an all Kurdish language album.

Before I forget, here's a video snip of the exchange between Ersoy's wisdom and Gündes' stupidity (Gündes is the first one talking):

Sieg Heil, Ebru!

If they'd taken up KCK's offer of a democratic solution back in August 2006, we wouldn't be here today. Those who rejected it, they are responsible.

FRIDAY PROTESTS AGAINST TURKISH AGGRESSION

TURKEY OUT OF IRAQI KURDISTAN

Nationwide demonstrations against Turkish Invasion
Friday, February 29th, 2008

Atlanta, GA
3:30PM - 6:00PM
Georgia State Capitol
214 State Capitol SW
Atlanta, GA 33034
contact: araalan@gmail.com


Dallas, TX
1:00PM - 4:00PM
Ferris Plaza - Outdoor Grounds
at Houston and Young Street, Downtown Dallas
Dallas, TX
contact: pesh20@gmail.com


Jacksonville, FL
4:00PM - 6:00PM
Jacksonville Division
US Courthouse
300 North Hogan Street
Jacksonville, FL 32202
contact: 904-549-1900


Phoenix, AZ
3:30PM - 5:30PM
Sandra Day O'Conor Courthouse
401 W Washington Street
Phoenix, AZ 85003
contact: kycarizona@gmail.com


San Diego, CA
11:00AM - 2:00PM
US Federal Building
880 Front Street
San Diego, CA 92101
contact: kurdincali@hotmail.com or 619-948-5163


San Francisco, CA
12:00PM - 2:00PM
1 Dr. C B Goodlett Place
San Francisco, CA 94102
contact: kurdishreliefaid@gmail.com


More information on Michigan, Minnesota, and Washington DC contact: kurdish.youth.club@gmail.com

CALLING ALL TURKS

"They have stepped into a quagmire, they are trying to set themselves free."
~ Bahoz Erdal, HPG Headquarters Commander.

Remember what Erdoğan told you: "Military service is not a place where you just take it easy."

Mother Nesrin Ulucan, left, and sister Sevcan Ulucan, right, mourn over the flag wrapped coffin of Turkish Army Lt. Gurcan Ulucan during a funeral ceremony in the Aegean port city of Izmir, western Turkey, Tuesday, Feb. 26, 2008. Lt. Ulucan was killed during the clashes with Kurdish rebels in northern Iraq. (AP Photo/Emre Tazegul)

But maybe now Erdoğan will allow Turkish mothers, wives, and sisters to cover the coffins of their dead with headscarves.

WAR NEWS ROUNDUP

"Kurds are fire, if approached correctly they get warm if approached wrongly they burn."
~ Leyla Zana.

Pop quiz, boys and girls: How do you spell "gewad"?

Istanbul, Turkey (KurdishMedia.com) 26 February 2008: Jalal Talabani, the head of PUK, stated that the PKK is a terrorist organsiation and they must evacuate their bases in Mount Qandil. Talabani was interviewed by the Turkish KANAL D at 19:00 local time on Tuesday.

[ . . . ]

Talabani, a Kurd, praised the Turkish parliament and government. He stated that he believes that there is a democratic elected parliament in Turkey. Talabani stated that Erdogan and Gül are elected politicians and they should be respected by the Kurds. He stated there are elected Kurds in the [ruling Islamic party] AKP

Talabani further declared that the PKK is a terrorist organization, as it is accepted by the international community. The PKK must be disarmed, Talabani added.

Talabani stated that he would visit Turkey in the near future because it was very important for him.

His interview angered northern Kurds. A Kurdish activist, Cengiz Apaydin, in Istanbul told KurdishMedia.com after the interview, “Talabani is a good Kurd for Turks. I am sure he has no links to the Kurdish people. A Kurd who praised by Turks is a bad Kurd.”

If you answered: M-A-M C-E-L-A-L, then you are 100% correct! Give yourselves gold stars and move to the head of the class!

Remember, "If we are for lunch, Talabani, you will be for dinner!" and more on the Bakûrî reaction in Amed (Diyarbakır).

It sounds like someone else wants to be just like Mam Celal when he grows up:

KurdishMedia.com: In a recent press meeting in the city of Erbil (Hewler) in Iraqi Kurdistan, the prime minister of the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) downplayed the recent attacks by the Turkish military in the Kurdistan federal region. The Kurdish PM, Mr. Nechirvan Barzani, answered questions from the press and commented on the recent invasion by the Turkish military in the northern most part of the Kurdistan federal region. Barzani made surprising comments that civilians had not been affected by the attacks when several different media reports indicate otherwise.

[ . . . ]

Barzani's comments came across very lightly as several news media reports and even footage of the region has clearly shown civilian areas to have been damaged by Turkish air assaults.

[ . . . ]

The Kurdish public remains curious about the intentions of the downplaying of such events. In the meantime, Turkish strikes on both rebel targets and the civilian population continue in the region.

Okay, maybe I'm being a little hard on Nêçîrvan; he wouldn't have anything to say if he weren't told to say it by Mesûd. But what does it matter since only 83 villages have been targeted since last Thursday. It's not like it was their personal bank accounts the Ankara regime was targeting.

If you want more on the lies of the regime that the Southern Kurdish leadership worships, take a look at something the hevals at KurdishInfo have translated for you. Just so you know, "asparagus news" means "bullshit news".

KurdishInfo also reports that some of the TSK's body count is a result of Turkish soldiers freezing to death and there's something about a TSK order of body bags. There's another mention of frozen Turkish soldiers at IraqUpdates along with a description of a recent battle:

Fighters of the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) waged a four-pronged attack on Turkish forces in the area of al-Zab, near the Iraqi-Turkish borders, a PKK official said on Tuesday.

"The Turkish side lost 21 soldiers and still the PKK fighters keep the bodies of five of them. Our fighters also seized their M-16 weapons," Ahmed Deniz, the PKK official in charge of foreign affairs, told Aswat al-Iraq – Voices of Iraq – (VOI).

"The PKK has lost only one fighter, though," Deniz said.

Uh-oh, Mr. Erdoğan, it looks like PKK has some American-made weapons.

He said the PKK also thwarted a landing by Turkish paratroopers in the area of Jamjou, adding "our fighters withstood the landing and forced the Turks to withdraw.

"The fighting is still flaring up in the areas of Bazia and al-Zab but it ended in Irsh, where the Turkish troops pulled out," he said.

Roz Wallat, a commander of the PKK, said "the Turkish troops' position is very hard due to the ferocious resistance showed by our fighters."

Wallat, however, expected military escalations on the Turkish side, noting "they (the Turks) are preparing for fresh operations."

The PKK had admitted on Tuesday the killing of four of its fighters in clashes with Turkish forces in northern Iraqi, affirming that the Turkish offensive was repulsed and troops denied further advances.

"Fighting is still going on for the sixth day running in several areas, including the Avashin, al-Zab and Bazia, where we managed to repulse the Turkish attack and deny Turkish forces more advances," Wallat told VOI.

"The number of Turkish fatalities reached 80 while some others froze to death due to snowfall in the area," Wallat said.

The WaPo tells us that "[m]any Pentagon and State Department officials are upset with the Kurds for failing to take strong measures against the PKK despite repeated promises to crack down on the group." Oh, too funny! I mean, after all, it's Pentagon and State Department officials who've been taking bribes from the Turks all these years and selling American nuclear technology to the Turks. The Turks, in turn, sold the technology to Pakistan and at least attempted to sell it to Libya, according to Sibel Edmonds. Who knows who else they sold to? North Korea?

Hevallo has you covered for lots of ongoing news, like Leyla Zana speaking in Amed, Aliza Marcus speaking in the IHT, and a video report from Al-Jazeera. Make sure and look at the old MedTV footage he dug up and partnered with an article on the recent shootdown of a Cobra by HPG in the Zap region. Some may remember the helicopter shot down in 1997 was carrying some paşas--meaning that PKK got a lot of bang for its buck.

RojTV has footage of the Cobra shootdown, video follows. Thanks to a reader who left the link in comments:

One more video, also from a reader who likes to share--Thank you, anonymous--and this one's a bit more personal:

Serkeftin!

A SONG FOR OUR SISTER COMRADES

Maybe in a dawn – coming soon –
They will pour down into the sad streets of Amad (Diyarbekir)
Carrying baskets of light and flowers.
~ Qubadi Jalizada.

From Kurdishaspect.com, a poem by Qubadi Jalizada translated by Dr Kamal Mirawdeli

**********

Qandil girls are sugar cubes
Confined in snow flakes confined inside
The super-wings of flight

They are a flock of Kahtuzins
They love the height of the gun more than the height of Kaka Mam (1)
They are fond of hand grenades and have forgotten
Their own small rounded breasts
Their blood is redder then the blood of martyrs

Qandil girls redden their lips with ember
And blacken their eyebrows with gunpowder
They comb their hair with winter winds
Inside their handbags there is only one comb
Of ammo

Their breath is thick mist of rainbow
In their waistband there is a dagger and a bunch of basil
Soaked in the scent of Nahri (2)

When they leave footprints on the snow
They immediately grow into hundreds of clove plants

These pure women of Qandil
Are the cinder underneath snow layers
Consoling the rivers that cold has frozen their blood

When they come out in flocks from the caves of struggle
The deers fall in love with them
They are a piece of God’s body

The women lovers of Qandil harvest rays of light
From the horizons of heaven
They tie into bunches
The red flowers lying under the snow

Maybe in a dawn – coming soon –
They will pour down into the sad streets of Amad (Diyarbekir)
Carrying baskets of light and flowers.

**********

The original Kurdish poem is published on www.klawrojna.com


(1) Kakamam and Khatuzin, the two lovers of the Kurdish epic Mam w Zin by leading Kurdish nationalist poet of Seventeenth century Ahmadi Khani. (1650 / 51-1707). They are often compared with Romeo and Juliet. (Translator)

(2) Nahre Kurdish town and nickname and birthplace of Kurdish nationalist leader Shekh Ubaidullay Nahri. (Translator)

TURKISH INVASION, TERROR, AND OCCUPATION OF SOUTH KURDISTAN

"Indeed, it is more than a bit ironic that the major recurring threat to society and political stability in Turkey over the past 60 years, the "Deep State," was actually enabled by the country's Western allies, and first of all, America."
~ Chris Deliso.

Check out Gordon Taylor's recent post at Progressive Historians:

For a lot of very young kids in the mountains of Iraqi Kurdistan, today really is Spain 1937. On Friday, 22 February, the Turkish Army began yet another ground operation into lands which its enemy, the PKK, refers to as the Medya Defense Zones; i.e., those steep and remote regions which adjoin the extreme southeast border between Turkey and Iraq. Fighting is reportedly intense, and the conditions, in freezing snow-covered mountains, as bad as anything that can be imagined. So far the Turks claim 79 "terrorists" killed, while the PKK says they have lost 2. The PKK claims some 22 Turkish soldiers have died, and they report the downing of a Cobra helicopter near the River Zab. (If true, the latter would definitely be a coup. And it is not, it should be noted, the first time that the PKK has taken out a helicopter.) First touted as a "major" incursion, it now appears that only a limited number of elite mountain troops, equipped with snow camouflage and winter uniforms, are taking part. These are undoubtedly picked men, all volunteers and probably all career soldiers--not draftees like the eight unfortunate young men who were captured by the PKK in October and ended up being imprisoned by their own army after they were repatriated.

[ . . . ]

Meanwhile the Bush administration, going on in its dazed, robotic way,continues to incorporate the PKK, a tiny group which has never attacked Americans, into its Global War On Terror. Both the EU and the United States, it should be noted, officially regard the PKK as a "terrorist" organization. Since the Turkish Prime Minister, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, visited Washington in November 2007, the U.S. also officially regards the PKK as a "common enemy".

[ . . . ]

Satellite maps tonight (1:20 AM, 2/24) show a large weather system that has come off the Mediterranean, now covers northern Syria, and soon will be in Iraq. Forecasts for Mosul call for rain, and rain in Mosul means snow in Kurdistan. Meanwhile, the Kurds of southeast Turkey, having held mass demonstrations repeatedly in the past three months, are planning another for Diyarbakir on Monday, February 25. It should be a big one.

Let's hope so.

Make sure you also check out Hevallo's recent posts on HPG's call for serhildan and his photos and video of today's protest in Amed (Diyarbakır).

Yeni Özgür Politika has a roundup of war news, all in Turkish. However, scroll down for Rastî weekend posts for most of that information.

Included is a body count which shows 22 Turkish soldiers killed on the first day of the war and 42 more killed in the last two days for a total of 64 Turkish soldiers killed total. Among the dead are included one major, a first lieutenant, a master sergeant, and a "skilled" sergeant. Names of the dead have also been released and are included in the YÖP article.

In another YÖP article, HPG Headquarters Commander Bahoz Erdal says the body count for the five days of the war is at least 81.

HPG reports three guerrilla şehîds.

Land Forces Commander İlker Başbuğ met with American military officials and peşmêrge commanders in Silopi on Sunday. As noted in the YÖP article (and in weekend comments), a convoy of some 70 American military vehicles, including M1 Abrams tanks, Bradley Fighting Vehicles, and armored Humvees left Musel for Duhok.

The WaPo has an article on the situation for civilians in the area of South Kurdistan near the border. In spite of quoting ridiculous Turkish general staff numbers--and you do know who to believe now, don't you?--it's clear in the article that the deployment of tanks in the area is meant simply to terrorize the civilian population:

"Whenever the children hear the military operations, they feel frightened," said school headmaster Aoni Mashaghti. "Most of the women came to school to take their kids out. Whenever they hear any sound of bombardment, the school becomes empty."

Hawzan Hussein, who lives in a community of about 160 families, said people are worried because some of the Turkish targets are so close to their homes.

The explosions "have become a daily scene that frightened me with the possibility of hitting our house any time," the 25-year-old said.

Associated Press Television News footage from the border area showed Turkish tanks dug into barren hillsides, with armored vehicles taking positions in towns.

Yeah, barren hillsides and occupation of towns. You're sure to find oodles of guerrillas in those places. The firing of tanks and artillery in this area, as well as Turkish military occupation of Southern Kurdish towns, has no other purpose but terror, which is exactly what we should expect since the world's greatest terrorist states are coordinating and conducting this war.

For more on civilians caught in the areas of Turkish aggression, check Goran's new article at MideastYouth:

Turning eyes to Turkey, one will be disturbed to say the least at the various issues at hand with regards to Turkey’s long history of human rights abuses and oppressive policies. The Kurds in Turkey have been the primary victims of these policies who have suffered everything from harsh assimilation campaigns, displacements and various forms of ethnic cleansing. During the 1990s alone, nearly 4000 Kurdish villages in Turkey were completely destroyed leaving the people homeless and forced to move to large cities where they rarely were able to adapt to the new life. Results of these internal displacements can be seen with a simple visit to the impoverished Kurdish southeast where unemployment rates reach unbelievable highs of 60 - 70%. In addition to economical as well as other problems (cited by human rights organizations) such as torture, unexplained disappearances, black operations in which innocents are killed and even the banning of the Kurdish language in Turkey and lack of cultural rights, the Kurds have also been limited a political voice. Many Kurdish politicians have been imprisoned sometimes for decades for simply speaking out for Kurdish rights. Resulting factor in all this: Many have turned to an arms struggle, which has haunted the country for over two decades.

[ . . . ]

First and foremost, although the Turkish military claims to have inflicted damage on rebel camps, no claims could be confirmed. Instead, footage and reports of the area are showing that the only damage being done is to the civilian villages in the region. (See a video reporting on the region at Real News.) Contrary to the Turkish claims, the Iraqi Kurdish leadership has said it believes Turkey’s expansion of the war into northern Iraq is not against the PKK Kurdish rebels, but instead against all Kurds as demonstrated by the attacks on the villages, and in particular, the Iraqi Kurds’ own political gains and autonomy in the region.

Of course, those conducting state terror against the Kurdish people, and their lapdogs in official media, have never made reference to the PKK's ceasefire and offer of a peaceful, democratic solution--and one that is in accord with Europe's EU requirements for Turkey's accession--both of which were offered in 2006.

If you possibly can, take some time to listen to a recent interview with Chris Deliso and Daniel Ellsberg by Scott Horton from the Stress blog.

In Part 1, Scott interviews Chris on the situation in the Balkans and promotes Chris' recent book, The Coming Balkan Caliphate: The Threat of Radical Islam to Europe and the West. Rastî readers may remember that Chris wrote an excellent article about the Ralston conflict of interest. What you may not know is that Chris took a bit of a break to write the Ralston article while rushing to get his Balkan Caliphate manuscript to the publisher.

Let me also take a moment to point out that the whole Yugoslav war was overseen by none other that The Cohen Group: William Cohen was the Secretary of Defense at the time; Marc Grossman was the Assistant Secretary of State for European Affairs; and Joseph Ralston was the Vice Chairman, Joint Chiefs of Staff.

As the only English-language journalist living in Macedonia, Chris has first-hand knowledge of everything that's going on there. In the interview, among other things, Chris talks about the nature of the UN peacekeeping mission in Kosovo, saying that the missions are a very lucrative business and that in the 10 years that the UN has had a mission in Kosovo, the roads are still unpaved or filled with potholes. According to Chris, "Kosovo is a corporation; it's not a country and it's a very corrupt one."

Well, what do you expect when The Cohen Group's involved?

In the second part of the interview, Daniel Ellsberg--who's been speaking out on behalf of Sibel Edmonds--joins the interview and the discussion of Kosovo and the Balkans delves into its connections with the Turkish Deep State and the Deep State's heroin industry. Ellsberg argues the case for Turkey having a nuclear weapons program. He talks more about Sibel's case, too.

Interesting stuff and highly recommended. The Part 1 mp3 can be downloaded here (runtime: 28.20). Part 2 of the interview can be found here (runtime: 49:08).

There is also a webpage for Part 1 and Part 2.

HPG'S WARNING TO VILLAGE GUARDS

A statement to the village guards from the HPG Headquarters Command, dated 20 February 2008:

Last warning to village guards: They will be particularly targeted if they become a part of the dirty war implemented by the Turkish army.

Besides the airstrikes against the Medya Defense Zones, the preparation of the Turkish state for a land operation continues.

In addition to reinforcing its forces in South Kurdistan, the Turkish state is preparing its forces located in Bamerne, Kanimasi, Amediye, and Şeladıze.

The mobilization in the Hakkâri, Şırnak, and Siirt regions is remarkable. Besides tank, artillery, and helicopter reinforcements, forces have been reinforced.

In meetings that took place in Siirt, Sirnak and Hakkari, the village guards have been ordered to join the operations. The use of village guards in warfare remains the policy of the Turkish state. In such meetings, the village guards' attitude is important. Our movement's policy toward the village guards is known. Several times we have mentioned that village guards must not be a part of the war. For this purpose, we legislated several amnesty laws.

By obeying the leadership's call, we have worked hard not to target the village guards and not to let them be part of the war effort. We had several calls. In previous years we were extremely cautious not to target any village guards. However, given the stage that we are in, it will be obvious that they will become targets if they join the operations.

Village guards who participate in land operations against our positions in South Kurdistan will be targeted. Village guards who participate in the operations will be as equally responsible as the Turkish state. The chiefs of village guards who incite other guards to participate in these operations will be specifically targeted. We do not want any guards to die. We do not want their families to suffer. However, if they participate in the operations, they will be punished severely.

No Kurds must become tools for the Turkish state's game. Land operations mean the deaths of thousands of troops. Village guards must also see this fact and not become a part of this dirty game for their sakes and their families' sakes.

Village guards, who previously received amnesty after our leadership's call, will be considered guilty if they participate in operations. Therefore, they will be punished severely for their crimes.

Village guards must know that the Turkish state could not achieve any result in 30 years: it implemented countless operations with hundreds of thousands of soldiers, airplanes, tanks, artillery, helicopters. Did they achieve any result? No! It is known that they will not achieve any result again. Then why should you die? Why leave your children as orphans? If the Turkish state can come against us with its army, let it come. Do not be a part of it. Stay in your village with your family.

We emphasize that the village guards must not accept the Turkish state's demands, oppression, or blackmail in order to participate in operations. If they participate, they will have to bear the results.

HPG Headquarters Command

BÜYÜKANIT HIDES REALITY

"Truth: the most deadly weapon ever discovered by humanity. Capable of destroying entire perceptual sets, cultures, and realities. Outlawed by all governments everywhere. Possession is normally punishable by death."
~ John Gilmore.

There's a remarkable video over at Youtube--embedded here for your convenience--with a bit of translation included, so you get the idea of what's going on:

A disastrous strike to the organization [PKK] from the TSK . . .

In its statements, the Turkish general staff says 100% of targets hit . . .

100% of targets have been hit . . .

General Yaşar Büyükanıt celebrated this success by hugging General Aydoğan Babaoğlu and expressed his feelings by saying, "I am proud of these kids . . . "

The targets were hit; the public is being convinced that the organization received a disastrous strike . . .

The general staff, unlike before, issued statements one after the other, mentioning the numbers of the organization's losses. . .

The general staff stated 200 targets had been hit; 150-175 "terrorists" have been pacified (from the media 26 December 2007) . . .

On 9 January 2008, General Yaşar Büyükanıt visited the GES [Genelkurmay Elektronik Sistemler] commander , who played a key role in the operations . . .

Everyone thought the general staff's visit was a visit to congratulate. However, with the exception of one: GES commander General Münir Erten . . .

Because Münir Paşa knew from the beginning that the operation was a failure and the number of "terrorists" killed was only 5 . . .

There were only five people killed . . .

The main reason for the General Staff to visit the GES commander was to make him corroborate the number of 175.

Here are very striking statements from General Münir Erten:

"The general staff would make statements about the bombings of December 16 and 18. They were looking for consistent information, thus they asked us (GES commander) "How many people we killed in the operations?" We openly said that five people [guerrillas] were killed and eight wounded. The first four of them were wounded in the first bombardment; the latter four were wounded when we had a land operation with two companies south of Şemdinli. Since they could not mention this in the statements, they just mentioned that numerous people [guerrillas] have been pacified.

"In a presentation where General Büyükanıt was also invited, he called me and made me sit right beside him. Then he said, 'I am very glad of the information you provided. I am receiving very good news from you.'

[By this quote, Büyükanıt is basically telling Münir Paşa to shut up, because Büyükanıt does not want to reveal the actual number of guerrillas killed--five. By mentioning "good news", Büyükanıt is referring to the phony 150-175 body count of his official statements.]

Here's the war balance of the operation, mentioned by GES commander, General Münir Ertan, which is being hidden from the public: 5 dead, 8 wounded . . .

Questions waiting for answers:

1. Why was the reality known by the Turkish chief of staff and the vice chief of staff hidden from the public?

2. Are there any other realities that are being hidden from the public?

3. While the results of the [aerial] operations are so disastrous [for TSK], what was the main goal of those operations and of the land operation that will begin on 22 February 2008? Is the goal of this new operation to relieve AKP from the pressure from the people about the headscarf, and thus to change the focus?

4. Has the number of dead for this new operation already been determined?

This video was originally posted on Youtube on 20 February 2008 . . . ONE DAY BEFORE LAND OPERATIONS BEGAN.

So who leaked the extremely confidential information about the date the land operation would begin?

Now, if the Turkish general staff lied about the number of guerrillas killed in their air strikes, but HPG clearly stated from the beginning that only five guerrillas were killed, you know who you should believe.

Now that you do know who to believe, what are you going to make of Turkish general staff claims of a land operation that includes "around 8,000 troops"? What are you going to make of Turkish general staff claims that the TSK killed 79 guerrillas? What are you going to make of Turkish general staff claims of who is a "terrorist"?

Now that you do know who to believe, what are you going to make of HPG claims that the guerrillas killed 22 Turkish soldiers in the Çiya Reş region? What are you going to make of HPG claims that the guerrillas killed 19 Turkish soldiers in the Zap and Zagros regions? What are you going to make of HPG claims of guerrilla possession of the bodies of 15 Turkish soldiers?

Now that you do know who to believe, what are you going to make of the official international media that takes the Turkish general staff as its source and what other realities is the official international media hiding from the public?

GOALS AND A PLAN: ANALYSIS FROM ÖZGÜR GÜNDEM

"Here are Kurdistan's rebellious mountains, not Palestine's streets!"
~ PKK statement.

Özgür Gündem has a rundown of analysis on the current situation in Kurdistan. Beginning with a review of recent events, the bulk of which has also been posted earlier this week on Rastî.

ÖG then lists the likely goals and plan of the Ankara regime:

Dirty goals.

1. After the aerial operations, land operations for invasion started.

2. Turkey made the US accept its demands but, more importantly, Turkey promised to fulfill all the demands of the US.

3. Turkey's main agenda is the complete annihilation of PKK. For that reason, Turkey demands more effective solutions beyond support for aerial strikes. Turkey implemented more than 20 operations, however it did not achieve any result. This time, in order to achieve a successful result, Turkey demanded the following from the US, England, and Israel: Special forces will be used rather than the use of conventional force; provision of their training, weaponry, and technical support; point-target operations instead of a frontal war; the military and intelligence reinforcement for this type of operation; and finally, acquiring the support of the PUK and KDP. It is mentioned that, with the support of US and Israeli intelligence and technical support, PKK's top administrators will be targeted. Besides, Turkey wants to impede the annexation of Kerkuk to South Kurdistan, which, in exchange for South Kurdistan's cooperation against PKK, Turkey is willing to recognize without the inclusion of Kerkuk.

4. The US, Israel, and England will provide military, technical, and intelligence support to Turkey. In return, Turkey, to whom countless weapons have been sold, would take the side of the US, England and Israel, against Iran. In addition, Turkey would send troops to Southern Afghanistan, which most NATO countries refuse to do.

5. Talabanî accepted Turkey's demands. In return, he has been invited to Turkey.

6. In this invasion plan, more than Talabanî, Barzanî is concerned. It has been observed that there is a tremendous effort to convince Barzanî. However, Barzanî is not convinced because he knows that Turkey's only goal is not the annihilation of PKK but also the Kurdish authority in the South. For that reason, he wanted Turkey to take some concrete steps that would prove Turkey's only aim is PKK. Turkey, on the other hand, hinted that it could found a consulate in Hewler. In return, it wanted Barzanî to explicitly state that he is against PKK. At this point, the process stopped. Thus the operations began despite Barzanî. An implication of this action is "You do not have any options other than cooperating with Turkey or remaining silent; these are your only choices." The statement of the Turkish general staff, regarding the invasion operation, mentioning "blackmailing regional factors" confirms this fact.

7. Thus it is obvious that Turkey's only goal is not only the annihilation of the PKK, but all Kurds are targeted.


Seige plan.

1. Turkey is trying to cover the fiasco of the air strikes by mentioning that air strikes would not be effective so land operations are required. By doing so, Turkey is covering the billions of dollars that have been spent during the previous operations.

2. Thinking that PKK has been weakened by air strikes, Turkey aims to create a buffer zone in South Kurdistan parallel to the one in Şirnak, Siirt, and Hâkkari.

3. Turkey aims to lay seige particularly to PKK regions in South Kurdistan.

4. This policy benefits the US, which aims to gain Turkey's cooperation against Iran, because the US wants Turkey to increase its influence in the regions where PKK has a presence For that reason, the US supports Turkey.

ÖG notes that PKK will become stronger while under attack because the freedom movement has dominated the area for some time, with the guerrillas having far greater practical knowledge of the terrain as it actually is on the ground. We are also reminded that PKK has been preparing itself for Turkish ground operations--both invasion and point-target attacks--for the last two years. An example, from May 2005:

[TSK] unsuccessful with its operations

The HPG officials said that the [TSK] has been unsuccessful in its operations and that the HPG’s new way of actions on the basis of small groups of guerrillas with active and high action capacity led to [TSK]’s classical operation tactic to be in vain.

HPG officials said that as a result of this new way of action, [TSK] had difficulties in “imposing clashes on the guerrilla under its initiative” and that the [TSK] military troops have become an open target for the guerrilla teams who have spread well into the territory.

HPG officials drew attention that the guerrillas are no longer raid police stations but aim permanent points where [TSK] is well established in.

40% of HPG losses are as a result of informers and ambushes.

HPG officials said that this was “a reflection of the strategic changes made” and that the military strategy changed accordingly”. They underlined that “actions undertaken were no longer to establish free areas” but “to force the other side to a resolution”.

They also added that guerrilla losses, as a result, decreased in comparison with past years, but the [TSK]’s losses increased due to a change in guerrilla movement.

HPG officials said that in the last year [TSK] has been trying to gain control through on the spot operations based on intelligence and informants. Hence the 40% of the losses incurred has been due to informers and ambushes.

A decrease in the village guard losses

The balance sheet of one year also draws attention to the losses of village guards. It can be seen that after the decision of June it represents 1% of the total losses of the [TSK] as compared with hundreds of village guards losses in the 1990’s. It was pointed out that this is in accordance with the decision “if the village guards do not participated in active warfare they will not be treated as targets” of the HPG II Conference.

The clearest warning to the US-England-Israel-Turkey alliance is summed up in ÖG thusly: "Here are Kurdistan's rebellious mountains, not Palestine's streets!"

In the meantime, HPG freedom fighters have brought down a Cobra in Çemço, Zab region, and HPG has lost two guerrillas.

Şehîd namirin!

NO REPRESSION LIKE IT IN THE WORLD

"Across this last weekend, the Western propaganda machine was working overtime, celebrating the latest NATO miracle: the transformation of Serbian Kosovo into Albanian Kosova. A shameless land grab by the United States, which used the Kosovo problem to install an enormous military base (Camp Bondsteel) on other people's strategically located land, is transformed by the power of the media into an edifying legend of "national liberation"."
~ Diana Johnstone, "Independence in the Brave New World Order".

State Department hack defends US recognition of Kosovo independence to the Chinese:

Kosovo's situation is "unique", a senior U.S. diplomat told China on Tuesday, trying to assuage Beijing's opposition to independence for the region from Serbia.

"As I emphasized to our Chinese interlocutors today, it is quite a unique situation in Kosovo, really very unique, and there's nothing like it in the world," U.S. Assistant Secretary of State Chris Hill told reporters in Beijing.

Really?? "There's nothing like it in the world"? Not quite:

. . . [I]f bad treatment of the local population were to disqualify a state from exercising sovereignty over part of its territory, then an awful lot of countries would be eligible for enforced amputation: Turkey would have to be stripped of Turkish Kurdistan . . .

At the same link, check the numbers:

The Foundation for Humanitarian Law led by Nata_a Kandi_, much beloved and much bankrolled by Western governments and non-governmental organizations, runs a project seeking to establish the number of dead and missing in Kosovo. According to an article in the Croatian magazine, Globus, "The project has documented 9,702 people dead or missing during the war in Kosovo from 1998 to 2000. Of this number, as things stand now, 4,903 killed and missing are Albanians and 2,322 are Serbs, with the rest either belonging to other nationalities or their ethnic identity remaining uncertain."

At least 40,000 Kurds were murdered by the Turkish state during the 1990s, the same time that Serbia was allegedly trying "to annihilate over one million Kosovar Albanian Muslims," according to another State Department hack, Daniel Fried.

Compare Turkey's program of "ethnic cleansing", from Hill and Fried's employer:

The exact number of persons forcibly displaced from villages in the southeast since 1984 is unknown. Most estimates agree that 2,600 to 3,000 villages and hamlets have been depopulated. A few NGO's put the number of people forcibly displaced as high as 2 million. Official census figures for 1990--before large-scale forced evacuations began--indicate that the total population for the 10 southeastern provinces then under emergency rule was 4 to 4.5 million people, half of them in rural areas. Since all rural areas in the southeast have not been depopulated, the estimate of 2 million evacuees is probably too high. On the low end, the Government reports that through 1997 the total number of evacuees was 336,717. Rapidly growing demands for social services in the cities indicate that migration from the countryside has been higher than this figure. Although this urbanization is also accounted for in part by voluntary migration for economic or educational reasons also related to the conflict, the figure given by a former M.P. from the region--560,000--appears to be the most credible estimate of those forcibly evacuated.

Compare against figures released in December 2006:

The long-awaited results of the government-commissioned national IDP survey were released in December 2006, confirming that the number of IDPs in Turkey is significantly higher than the previous government estimate of 355,807. According to the survey between 953,680 and 1,201,200 people were displaced for security-related reasons from the east and south-east of the country between 1986 and 2005.

How many ethnic Albanians were "ethnically cleansed" from Kosovo? After crunching the numbers, Kosovo looks less and less like "a really very unique" situation and more and more like much ado about nothing. Or I should say "much ado about oil":

Camp Bondsteel, the biggest “from scratch” foreign US military base since the Vietnam War is near completion in the Yugoslav province of Kosovo. It is located close to vital oil pipelines and energy corridors presently under construction, such as the US sponsored Trans-Balkan oil pipeline. As a result defence contractors—in particular Halliburton Oil subsidiary Brown & Root Services—are making a fortune.

[ . . . ]

The contract to service Camp Bondsteel is the latest in a string of military contracts awarded to Brown & Root Services. Its fortunes have grown as US militarism has escalated. The company is part of the Halliburton Corporation, the largest supplier of products and services to the oil industry.

In 1992 Dick Cheney, as Secretary of Defence in the senior Bush administration, awarded the company a contract providing support for the US army’s global operations. Cheney left politics and joined Halliburton as CEO between 1995 and 2000. He is now US vice president in the junior Bush administration. In 1992 Brown & Root built and maintained US army bases in Somalia earning $62 million. In 1994 Brown & Root built bases and support systems for 18,000 troops in Haiti doubling its earnings to $133 million. The company received a five-year support contract in 1999 worth $180 million per-year to build military facilities in Hungary, Croatia and Bosnia. It was Camp Bondsteel, however, that was dubbed “the mother of all contracts” by the Washington based Contract Services Association of America.

[ . . . ]

According to leaked comments to the press, European politicians now believe that the US used the bombing of Yugoslavia specifically in order to establish Camp Bondsteel. Before the start of the NATO bombing of Yugoslavia in 1999, the Washington Post insisted, “With the Middle-East increasingly fragile, we will need bases and fly over rights in the Balkans to protect Caspian Sea oil.”

The scale of US oil corporations investment in the exploitation of Caspian oil fields and the US government demand for the economy to be less dependent on imported oil, particularly from the Middle-East, demands a long term solution to the transportation of oil to European and US markets. The US Trade & Development Agency (TDA) has financed initial feasibility studies, with large grants, and more recently advanced technical studies for the New York based AMBO (Albania, Macedonia, Bulgaria Oil) Trans-Balkan pipeline.

[ . . . ]

The $1.3 billion trans-Balkan AMBO pipeline is one of the most important of these multiple pipelines. It will pump oil from the tankers that bring it across the Black Sea to the Bulgarian oil terminus at Burgas, through Macedonia to the Albanian Adriatic port of Vlore. From there it will be pumped on to huge 300,000 ton tankers and sent on to Europe and the US, bypassing the Bosphorus Straits—the congested and only route out of the Black Sea where tankers are restricted to 150,000 tons.

US support for Kosovo is all about the oil. And that may help explain why the new NATO protege is a criminal society.

For the moment, it appears that Russia will bide its time. China, with its own ethnic "problem" in Xinjiang, is standing with Russia.

What might Russia and China do? It might be appropriate for them to gather a consensus within the SCO to restrict Western access to Central Asian energy resources. Russia recently struck a couple of blows against the Western-backed Nabucco pipeline, which may explain Turkish foreign minister Babacan's current visit to Russia. Babacan may be trying to save an agreement between Russian Gazprom and Turkish Botaş.

Maybe, too, Putin can whisper something in Babacan's ear about possible Russian support for the "unique" situation of the Kurds under Turkish repression.

INVASION PREPARATIONS CONTINUE

"Through me you pass into the city of woe:
"Through me you pass into eternal pain:
"Through me among the people lost for aye.
[ . . . ]
"All hope abandon ye who enter here."
~ Dante Alighieri, The Divine Comedy, The Inferno.

The march toward Turkey's guardianship of South Kurdistan continues. From the Fethullahcı daily, Zaman:

Turkey’s ties with northern Iraq will be strengthened through a university to be founded by Turkish entrepreneurs in Arbil next year, officials from the school said.

[ . . . ]

Administrators from Işık College in Arbil told Today’s Zaman they would establish a new Turkish university in the city next year and that the project has already received a green light from the regional administration.

Note: Işık evler are Fethullahcı propaganda houses, so the name of the college indicates it is run by Fethullah Gülen's gang and will spread Turkish Islam throughout South Kurdistan.

"At Işık College we have been exerting our utmost to educate Iraqi youths for the past 14 years, a momentum we hope to maintain. We have received the necessary approval from the prime minister of the Kurdish regional administration, Nechervan Barzani, and the minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research in the Iraqi Kurdistan regional government, Idris Hadi Salih, to found a new university in the region."

The cehş in charge of propagandizing South Kurdistan's youth with Gülen's brand of Turkish Islam is Idris Hadi Salih. Here's what he has to say about the servility he expects of South Kurdistan, vis-a-vis its Turkish overlords and the importation of their "superior" culture:

"I believe that the foundation of a Turkish university in northern Iraq will strengthen ties between the two countries. We support Turkish entrepreneurs in extending the scope of their initiatives in our region. Turkey is an experienced country in the field of education. It will help us to increase the quality of education at our universities," he noted. Underlining that his country has always had strong ties with Turkey, Salih said, "We want to continue to cooperate with Turkey in various domains, including education."

He also noted universities in northern Iraq offer education in English, French and Arabic. "We wish to offer education in Turkish, too, but we don’t have Turkish professors at the moment. We want our students to have a good knowledge of Turkish language and culture so that citizens of both countries can get to know one another better. We aim at opening departments of Turkish literature at different universities in our region as soon as we meet the need for Turkish professors," added Salih.

All. Hope. Abandon. Ye. Who. Enter. Here.


Turkey continues preparations for its invasion of South Kurdistan:

The TSK has set up military bases at high elevations in the Cudi, Gabar, Küpeli, Tanin and Kato mountains, strategic points used by the PKK militants for infiltration into Turkey. The bases will include helicopter landing facilities, thermal cameras and artillery equipment.

TSK Special Forces based in Bolu, Kayseri, Isparta and Manisa have been trained for the purpose of destroying the remaining PKK presence in northern Iraq. The Land Forces Command is currently working to determine the number and state of armored vehicles, trucks, trailers, mobile medical units and mobile kitchens in the transportation units. A thorough review is being undertaken to check the state of equipment, clothing and food supplies of the units based in the region.

The spring operations will coincide with the withdrawal of the units that carried out operations in the winter and the deployment of replacement units. Military sources indicate that the spring operation will be carried out in two separate regions, one along Turkey's borders with Iran and Iraq and one inside Turkey, near the provinces of Tunceli, Bingöl, Siirt and Diyarbakır.

[ . . . ]

The number of training sessions for the command units based in Bolu, Kayseri, Isparta and Manisa has been increased in preparation for the ground operation in spring. Two large military units from Bolu have been deployed to the region. The Land Forces Command is currently working to determine the quantity of military equipment proper for use in the operation.

Turkey will also reportedly use unmanned Heron surveillance airplanes, which will be provided by Israel. These will play an indispensable role in the combat against terrorist activity. The Heron will be used to screen and monitor a large area, including northern Iraq and the Gabar, Cudi, Küpeli, Kato, Yazlıca and Tanin mountains.

Heron UAVs are produced by Israeli Aircraft Industries (IAI).

Turkey also asked the US for a dozen used American helicopter gunships at the end of January.

The invasion is simply a matter of time:

"The option of a ground operation is on the table. The timing (of such an operation) and weather conditions are important," Babacan was quoted as saying.

[ . . . ]

On Monday, the English language daily Today's Zaman, which is close to Erdogan's government, said the armed forces were planning to mount a land operation into northern Iraq in mid-March that would deal "a final strike" against the rebels.

The only things Turkey's waiting for are Herons, helicopter gunships, and the weather. Unfortunately for Turkey and its allies, it will be no final strike.

Meanwhile, in preparation for invasion, Turkey and the US have stepped up their efforts to silence Roj TV. This would guarantee the media blackout they need to cover the atrocities they intend on carrying out:

US plans to use the same method to end the PKK activities in the European countries as they did in the early 1900s against famous gangster Al Capone, Frank Urbancic Jr, Principal Deputy Coordinator for counter terrorism at the State Department, told in a meeting with four Turkish journalists at the US Embassy in Ankara.

He recalled that the US government sentenced Capone for not the criminal allegations but for tax fraud.

Urbacic, had talks with the Turkish Justice and Interior Ministry officials in Ankara, following a two weeks long visit to the Western European countries including, Denmark and Belgium.

To that end, the Belgian government, has fined Roj TV 4 million Euros and seized all funds.

Aren't you eager to have democracy spread in your direction by the world's two greatest terrorist states?

UPDATED INVASION PLAN

"Remember remember the fifth of November . . ."
~ Traditional rhyme, Guy Fawkes Night.

Özgür Gündem is running an item on the status of Kerkuk and Turkish recognition of an autonomous South Kurdistan. Naturally, there are strings attached. Excerpts from Özgür Gündem:

Turkey, which does not compromise to solve the Kurdish question in a democratic way, began its cross-border operation with the active support of the US on 16 December [2007]. Contrary to what they claim, the PKK did not suffer any significant losses [5 şehîds], but the Turkish army murdered civilians. Since the aerial operation resulted in a fiasco, Turkey is preparing a land operation against South Kurdistan, thus it is bargaining internationally for this operation. These activities are becoming obvious day by day.

It has been mentioned that if the KRG cooperates with Turkey against the PKK, Turkey would assume guardianship of a controllable South Kurdistan. For this purpose, two steps have been taken: 1. Cross-border operations are being implemented at the cost of the violation of a nation's sovereignty (Iraq's); 2. The Kerkuk referendum has been delayed. Thus the deal is that Turkey is willing to recognize a limited Kurdistan, which excludes Kerkuk, and includes only Hewlêr-Silêmanî.

Apparently Barzanî and Talabanî approved this plan, selling Kurdistan down the river, and for that reason we see no objections to Turkish stipulations. On the contrary, Talabanî has praised AKP's policies and urged Northern Kurds to vote for AKP.

Continuing:

A controllable Kurdistan plan became obvious with the cross-border operations. Some experts claim that, despite the support of the US, since Turkey could not annihilate the Kurds, Turkey is willing to recognize a limited South Kurdistan. On 5 November, Turkey forced the US to exclude Kerkuk from the Kurdish region and, thus Turkey would recognize the government of such a limited region. This was the first step of the controllable Kurdistan plan. It is not a coincidence that two days after the first Turkish [air] attack on 16 December 2007, the Kerkuk referendum was delayed on 18 December. While this decision of delay was being made, US Secretary of State Rice was in Kerkuk--again this was not a coincidence. These steps were the indicators of the US-Turkey alliance against the Kurds. Later on, the KRG parliament also approved the decision. The approval of the decision by the KRG was satisfactory for Turkey. In December 2007, Büyükanıt, who always considered South Kurdistan as a threat, said, "It might be a modern federation which excludes Kerkuk." By saying so, he stressed that Turkey would accept a South Kurdistan that excludes Kerkuk.

This is an updated plan because Turgut Özal was the one who most recently toyed with the idea of re-annexing the Mosul Vilayet:

Turkey has never entirely lost its interest in the former Vilayet of Mosul. There are those who believe that the entire Vilayet rightly belongs to Turkey — the previous Minister of Foreign Affairs, Yaşar Yakiş, suggested that Turkey might wish to lay claims to this territory. The late Turgut Özal, Turkey’s former Prime Minister and President, flirted with the idea of re-integration of this region with Turkey. He appeared to believe that a form of federation between Turkey and the Kurdish part of Iraq would be mutually beneficial and could potentially solve Turkey’s Kurdish problems. This shows at the very least that Turkey’s commitment to Iraq’s territorial integrity has been less than consistent and wholehearted.

More backgrounder on Turkey's longing for its Vilayet at AsiaTimes, pre-Iraq War.

Turkish politicians only matter as part of the "democratic" show for international consumption; however, if Büyükanıt--the real ruler of Turkey--accepts the deal, then you know know it's done. With all the scurrying around of generals and politicians in the last few weeks-culminating, no doubt, with Dick "Halliburton" Cheney's visit to Ankara this coming March--anyone who's surprised by a Turkish invasion in the spring should be considered incomparably thick.

At the end of last week, Hürriyet reported a surprise visit to Ankara of General James Cartwright, vice-chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. Cartwright's visit closely follows Turkish General Ergun Saygun's visit to Washington in the first week of February. More from AFP:

General James Cartwright, vice chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff, will discuss "the ongoing struggle" against the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) with Turkish counterparts, an embassy spokeswoman said.

Cartwright, Turkish General Ergin Saygun and US General David Petraeus, the top commander in Iraq, are coordinating measures against the rebel group.

Washington has been supplying its NATO ally Turkey with intelligence on PKK movements in northern Iraq, where the group has taken refuge.

On Thursday this week, the MGK (Milli Güvenlik Kurulu--National Security Council) will meet to hold discussions on this spring's Turkish invasion of South Kurdistan:

US Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. James Cartwright's last week's visit to Turkey will also be on the agenda at the meeting. Cartwright met twice with Turkish Deputy Chief of General Staff Gen. Ergün Saygun in the last 10 days, once in US and once in Turkey. His visit to Turkey bears great importance in terms of Turkey's possible cross-border operation into northern Iraq with its land forces in the spring.

In another amazing coincidence, the new US Attorney General, Michael Mukasey was in Turkey last week as well. In addition to offering advice on the legality of torture techniques as part of the Global War on Terror, Incorporated, he discussed joint US-Turkish operations against the Kurdish freedom movement and Turkey's hosting of al-Qaeda operatives:

Mukasey would not elaborate on media reports that his talks focused on the possible capture and handover to Turkey of PKK commanders.

Ankara and Washington, like much of the international community, list the PKK, which has waged a bloody 23-year campaign for Kurdish self-rule in southeast Turkey, as a terrorist organisation.

Mukasey said he also discussed measures against Al-Qaeda, which has stepped up activities in Turkey in recent years.

"Our two countries can expand our collaboration on this and other judicial and law enforcement matters," he said.

More from Hürriyet:

News about upcoming Cheney visit to Ankara was revealed during the latest high level visit by an American official, US Attorney General Michael Mukasey. Meeting with top level Turkish officials, Mukasey delivered a warning from Washington with regards to Al Qaeda presence in Turkey.

"We are watching Al Qaeda closely. And we have seen in the recent period that they have increased their activities in Turkey" he told Turkish Justice Justice Minister Mehmet Ali Sahin and Interior Minister Besir Atalay, according to sources close to the matter.

In addition, the US head of the Justice Department warned Turkish officials that it "appeared as though Al Qaeda may have chosen Turkey as a base". Mukasey is the first American head of Justice to have made an official visit to Turkey.

Really?? Only recently?? I don't think so. Remember, the 9/11 hijackers were trained in Turkey.

The updated plan for the invasion of South Kurdistan, and Turkey's "guardianship" of the same, has been agreed upon as part of America's wider plans for the region, specifically with regard to Iran. Turkey's expanded sphere of influence into South Kurdistan will shift the regional balance of power away from Iran.

Of course, the Medya Defense Zones--those areas in which PKK operates--are key terrain. That the US is working with Turkey to gain control of those areas by annihilating a freedom organization that has offered ceasefire and political solution, indicates clearly enough that the PKK has refused to compromise its integrity by caving in to US interests.

WHEN ERDOĞAN SAID "ASSIMILATION IS A CRIME AGAINST HUMANITY"

"[I]f we do what [German Chancellor] Merkel wants, then we will lose our identity."
~ R. Tayyip Erdoğan.

From Hasan Cemal at Milliyet:

Dear Prime Minister, are the Kurds assimilated or integrated?

Prime Minister Erdogan wanted to open Turkish high schools and Turkish universities in Germany, and said "Assimilation is a crime against humanity."

The Germans got angry.

It's normal.

I too thought about what I am: An assimilated Turk, or an integrated Turk?

My grandfather was Circassian, my grandmother was Georgıan. My great-grandfather was from Mytilene; my mother's mother is from Serez, Greek Macedonia. However, I don't have any interest any more in being Circassian, Georgian, or Macedonian.

Then am I assimilated? Or integrated? I guess I'm assimilated. Because I don't know anything about my roots. I don't have any knowledge about their customs and their languages. I have never been taught about these kinds of things in school.

I thought of Ahmet Türk. His last name is Türk, but he is a Kurd. In fact, he's a Kurd and the son of a Kurd. Then is he assimilated or integrated?

Are you kidding?

Look, they haven't let him name himself with a Kurdish last name . .. ..

Our state went against the Kurds very decisively. In addition to not letting the Kurds give Kurdish names to their children, the government changed the Kurdish names of the villages, the towns, the mountains . . .

Since the 1920s and on, speaking Kurdish in public was banned (the government of the 12 September coup renewed this ban in 1983) . . .

Our state even said there are no Kurds, but only Turks, for years and years. It denied the Kurdish language, culture. In short, Kurdish identity as a whole. It arrested both the people who said there are Kurds and who said there is a Kurdistan, just because they said so.

(Furthermore, the state treated such people as "terrorists" by the Anti-Terror Law of 1990)

In short, in this country:


Kurdish has been banned.

Kurdish radio has been banned.

Kurdish television has been banned.

Kurdish publications have been banned.


Even today these restrictions are partially being implemented. Even though the laws seem to allow several things [for the Kurds], in practice there are no such things.

Now, if we ask Ahmet Türk: Are you assimilated or integrated? I don't know, but Ahmet Türk might also get angry about such a question. "Go away, man," he might say.

But I believe nowadays the most proper person to respond to this question would be Tayyip Erdogan.

Dear Prime Minister, are the Georgians, Circassians--or people like Ahmet Türk, who are Kurds and the sons of Kurds--are they assimilated or integrated?

Your answer might be very interesting.

I agree with your view that assimilation is a crime against humanity. Especially beginning in the 18th and 19th centuries, all nation-states committed such crimes abundantly in the name of nationalism. I don't think there are many exceptions to this view.

Look, a couple of days ago, the new Australian Labor Party prime minister, Kevin Rud, went to the podium in parliament and apologized to the indigenous citizens, the Aborigines.

Why? Because Australia implemented a brutal assimilation policy against the Aborigines for a century. It was so brutal that the Aborigine children were forcibly separated from their families and exposed to an education policy that denied their roots.

Yes, Mr. Prime Minister. I agree with you, assimilation is a crime against humanity . . .

Now I'm asking you: Are the Kurds assimilated or integrated? In fact, I'm curious about your answer.