WINNING HEARTS AND MINDS

"I love them because they were the only ones who stood up to the Turkish incursion and defended Kurdistan."
~ Goran Faris.

PKK wins hearts and minds in South Kurdistan, from IWPR:

Abdulla Saeed walks to a makeshift tent a few kilometres from his deserted home. He hums a classic Kurdish song as he follows his donkey down a mountainside in northeast Iraq.

Saeed, 61, is ferrying clothes and other essentials to eight members of his family who fled their home following a Turkish incursion into northern Iraq in pursuit of Kurdistan Workers Party, PKK, rebels in February.

[ . . . ]

There is no official record of the damage that has occurred in northern Iraq as the result of the ongoing conflicts. However, locals say the recent Turkish incursion damaged dozens of villages in the area.

Around 160 families from six villages in Zharawa district near the Qandil mountains fled the fighting and now live in an improvised camp, according to Azad Hasso, the district head.

Mohammad Muhssin, a local Kurdistan Democratic Party, KDP, official, said the fighting also uprooted around 150 families from their villages close to the Turkish border in the Amedi area, northeast of the Iraqi Kurdistan capital of Erbil.

Muhssin said five bridges have been destroyed in Amedi. “People from more than 200 villages used those bridges. Now the roads have been cut,” he said.

Villagers said they faced economic hardship as a result of the clashes.

Hassan Wssu Marf, 59, from the village of Razga in the Qandil range, said he left his home several months ago.

"We can't go back to raise our livestock or to take care of our orchards,” he said. “It’s terrible."

Yet despite the damage and suffering caused to civilians, public support for Kurdish rebels – particularly the PKK – remains high.

“They are Kurds and demand their own rights,” said Saeed. “Neither Iran nor Turkey wants [the fighters] along the Iraqi border because [they] prevent them from destabilising Iraq.”

“I want [the PKK] to be victorious,” said Goran Faris, a 25-year-old secondary school teacher in Sulaimaniyah, the largest city in northeastern Iraq.

“I love them because they were the only ones who stood up to the Turkish incursion and defended Kurdistan.”

Interesting . . . it looks like the Christian jihadis (see the freaks in this video) are lending a helping hand to Turkish Islamists:

War makes strange bed fellows, especially in Turkey, where a dispute over creationism vs Darwinism has created an unusual alliance between the country's Islamists and conservative Christians in the US.

Darwin's Theory of Evolution, in layman's terms, proposes that life descended from organisms through "survival of the fittest." Creationism holds that life was created by an all-knowing being, that is, God.

Creationism advocates from the US traveled to Istanbul May 2007 to meet with their counterparts, seeking to galvanize their link in the fight to bring creationism to schools and universities in their respective countries. The meeting was endorsed by Istanbul mayor Kadir Topbas, a member of the Islamic-rooted Justice and Development Party (AKP).

[ . . . ]

The May meeting is part of a growing battle for the hearts and minds of Turkey's youth. In fact, conference organizer Mustafa Akyol told ISN Security Watch, in Turkey the creationism-evolution debate is more extensive than it is anywhere in the world.

Akyol is also a member of the Journalists and Writers Foundation, established by Fethullah Gulen, leader of a wealthy Islamic sect that bears his name, the Gulen Movement. Gulen lives in self-imposed exile after fleeing charges of subverting the state, or more specifically, of attempting to "undermine secularism" in Turkey. After long trial, he was acquitted in 2006 but the case has since been reopened, despite the fact that he is said to actually be in the good graces of the current government.

Gulen has an influential network of TV and newspaper interests in Turkey along with close ties to the government. It is rumored he even has the ear of Turkish President Abdullah Gul.

Gülen has far more than just "the ear of . . . Abdullah Gül". The AKP is run by Fethullacı, and the Fethullacı have been pressing for the same kinds of stupidity as their allies, the Christian Jihadis:

The Gulen Movement, along with other creationist advocates, has been lobbying with increasing success for school textbooks to put creationism on equal footing with Darwinism.

[ . . . ]

The involvement of US Christian groups in Turkey in the battle against Darwinism has a long history. In 1985, the Dallas-based Institute of Creation Research collaborated with the then-Turkish government to introduce creationism into the country's school curriculum.

According to Dr Ozgur Genc, a professor at Bosphorus University and a leading opponent of creationism, its introduction was part of a wider state policy called the "Turkish Islamic synthesis."

The country's military rulers at the time, who had seized power in a 1980 coup, wanted to encourage religion to undermine the then-strong support in the country for left-wing ideas.

It's too bad some of the Deep Staters that have been killing Christians in Turkey can't be turned loose against the Christian jihadis. If such were the case, those two groups could fight it out and we might be able to avoid Dark Ages v.2.

From the Liar-Liar-Pants-On-Fire Department:

Come on, now, Condi . . . we know you're lying. Sibel Edmonds called you out on your "outrageous lie" regarding 9/11:

About two weeks before Condoleezza Rice appeared before the 9/11 Commission she made the statement, "We had no specific information." And I told the press that that was an outrageous lie. That was printed on the front page of The Independent [UK] and several other papers here. And what she did during the hearing was very interesting. She corrected herself saying, "Well, I made a mistake. I should not have said 'we.' I should say that I personally did not have specific information." And that is exactly what I stated. "We" includes the FBI, and therefore I can tell you with 100% certainty that that is an outrageous lie.

CYA as White House National Security Advisor; CYA as Secretary of State. If picked up by McCain as a running mate, CYA as VP.

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

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.

NO INVASION NECESSARY

"Contrary to the received wisdom, global markets are not unregulated. They are regulated to produce inequality."
~ Kevin Watkins

What happens when globalization comes to Kurdistan? Slavery. From the right-wing reactionaries at the NYTimes:

Thousands of foreign workers have come to the Kurdish districts in the last three years, a huge turnaround for a place that had hardly any before, making it one of the fastest-growing Middle Eastern destinations for the world’s impoverished. They come from Ethiopia, Indonesia, the Philippines, Bangladesh and Somalia, supporting an economic boom here that is transforming Kurdish society.

But nearly all foreign workers interviewed over a two-week period here said they had been deceived by unscrupulous agents who arrange the journeys. Unable to communicate, some arrive not knowing what country they are in. Once here, their passports are seized by their employment agencies, and they are unable to go home.

[ . . . ]

Nisha Varia, an investigator with Human Rights Watch, said the combination of unscrupulous brokers in the workers’ home countries and labor practices in Kurdistan left the workers with few options.

“Each side denies that it knows what other is doing,” she said. “In reality, they are much more interconnected than that. They are doing business together, and that leads to these recruiting fees and debts, and puts the workers at risk of forced labor.”

I wonder why the NYTimes didn't contact the KRG's Ministry of Human Rights? Surely the ministry should be investigating this situation and the companies involved with this kind of abuse should be kicked out of the South. Additionally, employers in Kurdistan should be hiring Kurds but to do so, they must pay a just wage. After all, all the talk of the "economic boom" is highly misleading. There's only an "economic boom" for those on the take, for the elites, and not for the average Kurd.

But I think we all know very well why this contemporary slavery is tolerated in South Kurdistan. It's tolerated by both the KDP and PUK.

What else happens when globalization comes to Kurdistan? Your enemies take you over. In his interview after the US and Turkey began their air strikes against South Kurdistan, HPG Headquarters Commander Bahoz Erdal noted that the Southern Kurdish leadership "stepped back" after the Turkish parliament's cross-border operation vote. That stepping back has its answer in the tightly interconnected business interests between Ankara and the Barzanîs and Talabanîs. From the hevals at Firat News:

Turkish corporations in South Kurdistan provide heavy financial support to KDP- and PUK-affiliated press and broadcast organizations in order to divert the people from the real face of current military operations, by broadcasting advertisement and variety programs.

Turkish corporations in South Kurdistan began to support KDP- and PUK-affiliated press and broadcasting organizations. At first, the KRG warned Southern media to cut off broadcasting about PKK. Now it has been revealed that Turkish corporations have given over $1 million as "gifts", for advertisement, and as tax.

Immediately following Turkish military operations in South Kurdistan, Turkish corporations which have marketing shares there, such as Oyak, Arçelik, Ülker, Nursoy, and Gürbağ, started to broadcast variety programs on TV, radio, and other satellite-based broadcast media which are affiliated with the KDP and PUK. It is believed that the goal of these attempts is to distract people from Turkish military operations.

KDP General Secretary Fadil Mirani's broadcast organs, such as Vin TV, are heavily supported by Turkish corporations.

Arçelik-Ülker and OYAK corporations organize street competitions and variety programs through Korek Telecom and AsiaCell telephone service operators, which are affiliated with KDP and PUK. These operators promise to give gifts ranging from $100 to $1,000 USD for text messages sent.

Arçelik had promised to deliver large appliances and electronics through the regional and satellite-based TV. As an example, when Turkish military operations began on 16 December, Arçelik started delivering large appliances, such as refrigerators, televisions, washing machines, ovens, and the like, to the people.

In addition, Arçelik is operating a lottery in South Kurdistan. Using the Bayram and New Year holidays as a pretext, it promised to give a brand new car, money, and such gifts to the people.

In addition to this, OYAK, Ülker, and the other Turkish corporations are arranging competitions on the streets where golden Kurdistan flags, made by Southern Kurdish jewelers, are delivered to people.

The irony here is that even though the Ankara regime does not trust the KRG, as HPG's Bahoz Erdal noted, and the Turkish prime minister opposes Kurdish autonomy "even in Argentina. Another irony is that OYAK is the Turkish military's holding company and the other Turkish corporations mentioned in the Firat article (Arçelik, Ülker, Nursoy, and Gürbağ), along with the AKP, belong to Fethullah Gülen's Islamist empire . . . or should I say "caliphate"?

For more on that, see something from Aland Mizell, and his latest, at KurdishMedia.

No wonder the cehş Talabanî is urging Northern Kurds to support the AKP.

No invasion is necessary. The cehş of the South have capitulated for personal gain and the barbarians are inside the gates.

Gordon Taylor at Progressive Historians has translated something of interest to Kurds from Le Monde, and his own comments are to the point [original emphasis]:

Turkey is not, cannot, will not be a truly viable candidate for membership in the EU as long as its government continues in its present form. And there is no power, domestic or foreign, that can change that government in any substantial way for the foreseeable future. Turkey is what it is: a nation where the politicians pretend to govern and armed bullies pretend to let them, a land where the average liberal has more courage than a thousand Americans. Those like me who cherish their memories of this land need to start speaking out. The years of diplomacy and forbearance, of hope for democratic change, have left us with ruined villages, imprisoned journalists, and good people murdered while their killers are congratulated by the police. With that kind of record we may as well try truth.

Too bad the leaders of South Kurdistan cannot admit the same, but it may be too late for that now anyway. They have become irrelevant.

AUX BARRICADES!

"If you stop struggling, then you stop life."
~ Huey P. Newton.

To confirm some email I've gotten over the last few days:




From DC Indymedia:

This week, several Kurdish communities across the United States are expected to demonstrate in several cities in opposition to the Turkish government's approval for the invasion of Iraqi Kurdistan. The youth of the Kurdish-American communities in each city have coordinated with one another to launch demonstrations on the same dates in order to express a unified opposition to the recent developments in Turkey and the Turkish government's decision to invade Iraqi Kurdistan.

[ . . . ]

Kurdish communities have organized protests in several cities including Atlanta, GA, Los Angeles, CA, Dallas, TX, Nashville, TN, Phoenix, AZ, San Francisco, CA, New York, NY, and Washington DC. The demonstrations in Atlanta, Los Angeles, Nashville, Phoenix and San Francisco are expected to take place on November 2nd, 2007 and in Dallas, TX on November 3rd, 2007. The demonstrations in New York and Washington DC will take place on November 5th, 2007 to coincide with the visit of the Turkish prime minister in Washington DC.

Demonstrations will be highlighting the importance of preventing a Turkish invasion of the only peaceful part of Iraq, and recognizing the legitimacy of the Kurdistan Regional Government and its potential role in a peaceful process to solve the conflict existing in the region. The demonstrations will also highlight the importance of belief that a political and peaceful solution is the only viable solution to the conflict, and that the peace offerings and Kurdish rebel ceasefires negotiated and supported by members of the Iraqi government should be recognized as important developments to the progression of peace in the region.

Representatives in each of the cities are urging members of Kurdish and non-Kurdish communities in America to show their support and join the demonstrations.

Contact information for specific communities is listed at the link.

VERY GOOD PEOPLE

"I like the PKK. They are very good people. They look after people here. The PKK are fighters but they are not dangerous people like other people, like Islamic people. Like Osama bin Laden."
~ Resident of Ranya, South Kurdistan.

The interest of the Progressive Historians has been piqued by YJA-STAR şehîd Devrim Siirt. Take a peek at the commentary by Gordon Taylor at the following links:

Moonlight in the Mountains

More Moonlight

Oramar

The Friends of Aynur

Turkish Army Captives

The Edge of Catastrophe


Okay, I confess that I have absolutely no idea what makes mainstream journalists tick--except the possibility of their getting a regular paycheck--and I'm suspicious when the old reactionary news services report accurately anything in the Kurdish world. The BBC must have someone running all over North and South Kurdistan, though, because they have another piece out, this time on PKK's neighbors in South Kurdistan:

In Ranya, local people have got used to their neighbours in the PKK.

"I like the PKK. They are very good people," one man said.

"They look after people here. The PKK are fighters but they are not dangerous people like other people, like Islamic people. Like Osama bin Laden," he added.

The recent shelling by the Turkish military in northern Iraq took place some distance from Ranya and residents in the town did not seem worried about the prospect of a Turkish military invasion.

(Photo: Warzer Jaff for The New York Times)

However, they did question the motives behind the army's plans.

"The Turkish government wants to attack all the Kurdish people and not just the PKK," said one middle-aged man.

"Turkey just wants to make things complicated here in the Kurdish region of Iraq," he said

[ . . . ]

In Ranya an elderly man in the market caught the mood of the town.

"The PKK are human beings like us," he said. "They just want to stay in their country.

"The Turkish government is like Saddam Hussein's regime. In the south of Turkey they cannot even study their own language. The situation is getting worse. We just want it to improve and for there to be peace," he added.

If you haven't figured out yet why DTP refuses to label PKK as "terrorists," another report from the BBC will explain it to you:

. . . [T]here is another dynamic at play in this region, where most people are ethnic Kurds.

Unlike in western Turkey, many here do not condemn what the PKK did. To them, the PKK remains the group that fought for their rights in the days when even saying you were a Kurd was seen as separatism.

The situation today has improved enormously. Even the most militant Kurdish nationalists admit that.

But ties to the PKK remain strong and there are plenty here who describe the violence as "self defence" against a military that has been targeting them for years.

"It's an instinct. People still feel the PKK is fighting for them," Mesrut explained.

A tiny man - dwarfed even further by his huge wooden desk - he runs a daily news-sheet in a town close to the Iraqi border.

That brings its own hazards. If he calls the PKK "terrorists" using official terminology, he gets threatened by locals.

With tension now so high, he uses news agency reports instead to avoid responsibility.

"People here still don't feel like equals in Turkey," Mesrut explains.

"And their children are still with the fighters in the mountains, so how can they condemn the PKK?"

Does everyone get it now?

In the meantime, there a couple of little snags that have developed against the international temper tantrum that the Ankara regime's been throwing. First, the US military is not going to go to Qendil and do anything . . . or so says the ranking US military officer in South Kurdistan:

Major General Benjamin Mixon, commander of Multi-National Division North, said Iraq's three northern provinces were under the control of the Kurdish provincial government and that he had no instructions to take action in the border area.

Asked what his forces planned to do against the Kurdish Workers Party or PKK rebels, Maj Gen Mixon said: "Absolutely nothing."

Pressed by reporters via a video link-up from Iraq whether there was anything US forces could do to head off a Turkish cross-border incursion, Maj Gen Mixon said, "I have not been given any requirements or any responsibility for that."

He said he had been given no instructions "that would even vaguely resemble" sending US forces into the Kurdish areas to reassure the Turks.

"Let me put it to you very clearly: the three northern provinces are under KRG [Kurdish regional government] provincial Iraqi control," he said.

"They have a security force, which you are all familiar with known as the pesh-merga. It's their responsibility to ensure the integrity of their particular provinces."

Translation: Screw you, Büyükanıt.

This tells me that the US is very aware of the geography, the climate, and the nature of guerrilla warfare, and they have no intention of getting involved with any kind of hunt on the ground for PKK fighters. They probably figure, "Better to let the Turks go in there,get the crap knocked out of them, and let them leave with their tails between their legs once more." And that's smart thinking.

The second snag came from another skunk at Turkey's garden party, Mahmoud al-Mashhadani, the speaker of the Iraqi parliament:

The speaker of Iraq's parliament warned Turkey on Thursday that his government would cut off the flow of oil from northern Iraq if Ankara followed through on its threat to level economic sanctions against the country.

Mahmoud al-Mashhadani's comments came a day after Turkey's top leadership agreed to recommend the government take economic measures to force cooperation by Iraqis against Kurdish rebels who have been staging cross-border attacks against Turkish troops.

"Northern Iraq cannot be pressured," al-Mashhadani told reporters in the Syrian capital of Damascus. "Iraq is a rich country, and if there are economic pressures, we will cut off the Ceyhan pipeline," he said, referring to two oil pipelines that run from northern Iraq to Turkey's Ceyhan oil terminal on the Mediterranean Sea.

The US will not commit fighters, Baghdad's going to turn off the spigot, no one supports a Turkish invasion, the Kurdish people overwhelmingly support PKK, and everyone--except the Ankara regime and the American Corporate State--wants a peaceful, political solution for the Kurdish situation in Turkey.

Every once in a while in this last week, I've had the suspicion that this current situation has been provoked by Ankara and stoked by the corporate media for the sole purpose of raising the price of a barrel of oil to over $90. It's just a matter of time before it reaches $100 a barrel, right?

Who benefits from this? Is it a coincidence that most of the Bush administration is composed of Big Oil pimps and that they were the ones who planned the invasion of Iraq well before September 11?

CALL FOR RESISTANCE

Thousands of Kurds and supporters take to the streets in Dahuk, a Kurdish city near the border with Turkey, some 430 kilometers (260 miles) northwest of Baghdad, Iraq Thursday, Oct. 18, 2007 to protest the Turkish parliament's decision to authorize the government to send troops across the border to root out Kurdish rebels. More than 5,000 people packed the streets as they marched to the U.N. offices. (AP Photo)

As Kurds took to the streets in Dihok and Hewlêr in protest against Turkey, a statement of leadership has finally come from the South Kurdistan president. From Özgür Gündem:

Mesûd Barzanî has a statement for the Kurdish people on the TBMM's cross-border operations vote. Barzanî's statement was made through Dr. Rizgar Sindî, KDP Zaxo General Headquarters chief.

In his statement, Barzanî wants the kurdish people in general to become organized and take up positions in case of a Turkish cross border operations, they would have a very severe response.

Turkey is trying to annihilate the Kurdish presence from history. This is Turkey's main goal. Saddam Hussein could not finish the Kurds; how will Turkey finish them? In such an operation, Turkey would be the loser. Ankara is supposed to listen to the Kurds' calls for peace and dialog. Otherwise, the entire Kurdish people will resist a Turkish occupation.

Dr. Sindî spoke about some of the details of a 12 October meeting, with Behdinan radio and television broadcasting his speech. "PKK is a Kurdistan organization that they [KDP] would never fight anymore.

"Turkey says 'we are going there for the PKK and we will have a cross-border operation'. PKK is a Kurdish party and we are not going to fight against PKK. We are not going to use our arms against an organization which is demanding its cultural rights. Our people are not going after their brothers to attack."

Dr. Sindî continued,"We want to share the outcomes of a meeting we had with President Barzanî with our people. Even though we do not give credit to Turkey's cross-border operation, its aim is to annihilate Kurdish existence and it cannot accept the Kurdish group which has its government, its parliament, and is a ruling group. Turkey sees Kurdish law, government, and the Kurdish nation as a threat. Not only Turkey, but also the countries which say that we share the brotherhood of religion, also see the Kurds as a threat in terms of Kurdish independence and of their own traditions.

Speaking of Kurdish willingness to live with the neighboring countries in peace and brotherhood, Dr. Sindî said, "Kurdish people will not give up their land. As it was in the past, we will defend our land. Until the last drop of our blood, we will maintain our struggle. For that, Kurdish people around the world must begin a resistance and they must preserve the gains we have made now. Whatever it takes for this, it will be done. Because this is the legitimate defense of the Kurdish people for preserving their land and their law. The world is not the old world and Turkey must know this. Kurds are stronger than any time before, and Turkey must know this."

Stressing that Turkey must resolve its Kurdish question in a political and peaceful way, "You cannot solve any problem with a war, violence or weapons. Turkey cannot reach anywhere by using its military forces against PKK. On the contrary, it will just finish itself. For this reason, this question must be solved in political ways. The PKK question is the Kurds' legitimate, natural, cultural, and political rights that are supposed to be recognized by Turkey. In that way only will it be settled down. Saddam fought 50 years. He used chemical weapons, committed massacres, ruined all Kurdish cities and emptied the villages. However, the things they had done became trouble for them later. Kurdish people were never finished, but he and his generals were arrested and punished in a way that no one could even imagine."

Rizgar Sindî mentioned that the US is also opposing a cross-border operation and that on 12 October, the American ambassador to Iraq called Barzani and said they objected to Turkey's cross-border operation in terms of entering Kurdistan. France and Germany also object to an invasion and they indicated their support for Kurdistan. According to the KDP, the Baghdad government must take a clear stand against this cross-border operation.

If Turkey has a war against South Kurdistan, the Kurdish people are capable of fighting for years, and such a war will really last for many years. If Turkey has such an operation they will use their legitimate self-defense right and raise a resistance. This is the message of Mesûd Barzanî that I wanted to convey to our people.

The speech was broadcast for almost one hour on Behdinan's television and radios.

PROPAGANDA

"I think there is a good reason why the propaganda system works that way. It recognizes that the public will not support the actual policies. Therefore it is important to prevent any knowledge or understanding of them."
~ Noam Chomsky.

Last week HPG stated that the leak of the phony invasion news was a purposeful one by the Ankara regime in order to test the water, or "temperature checker" as DozaMe reported, of international opinion over an actual invasion.

Today it would appear that HPG was correct in that assessment, as the Islamist lapdog of the Turkish general staff announced:

Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan signaled on Tuesday that Turkey should focus on battling Kurdish guerrillas at home rather than in northern Iraq.

[ . . . ]

"Has the fight with the 5,000 terrorists finished domestically, that we should now be talking about Iraq?" Erdogan said when reporters asked him about a cross-border operation against separatist PKK rebels.

And, from Iraq Slogger:

"There are 5,000 terrorists in the mountains in Turkey. Is the struggle against them over? Is this issue resolved so that we can come to dealing with the 500 terrorists in northern Iraq?" Erdogan was quoted as saying by the Anatolia news agency.

Now the regime admits what anyone with half a brain, a slight understanding of guerrilla warfare, and knowledge of the geography in question could deduce for themselves . . . most of PKK is inside the recognized borders of Turkey, while only a headquarters staff is at Qendil.

That also means that continued pressure for invasion of South Kurdistan indicates a completely separate goal from that of "countering terror," and that goal includes the oilfields of Kerkuk and Mûsil.

The ultra-fascist Tulin Daloğlu, who regularly opines at the equally ultra-fascist Washington Times, weighed in on recent events herself:

. . . A senior U.S. official — solely authorized to talk on the PKK related matters — said if Turkey invades Northern Iraq, its territorial integrity will be jeopardized. The Turkish military may agree with him. The question is who exactly provoked the recent terrorist acts on Turkey. In the last several weeks, Gen. Buyukanit expressed his concern over the states that directly or indirectly help PKK terrorism. With that in mind, the Turkish military perceives the PKK as a secondary threat.

[ . . . ]

The thing is, the key to this matter is hidden in the Iranian issue. Until Washington decides whether or how it will prevent Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons, there will be no clear action against the PKK. So far, Washington seems intent on using the Kurds to create unrest in Iran and Syria. Evidently, the United States may not want to hurt Turkey, but it may do it out of necessity.

What "senior U.S. official — solely authorized to talk on the PKK related matters" would be the one referred to here, if not the one and only Lockheed Martin "special envoy" to coordinate the PKK for Turkey?

Indeed, the key is hidden in the Iranian issue, and also includes Syria, as we learned through HPG's derailing last week of a train carrying a pretty good number of arms and equipment (with a greater number of unknown equipment not permitted to be published in the press by the Paşas) from Iran to Syria through Turkey itself. That was an embarrassing moment for the Deep State, so embarrassing, in fact, that Wolf-ette Daloğlu neglected to mention it.

Meaning, naturally, that Turkey is involving itself in the US vs. Iran proxy wars going on in Lebanon and Gaza, with NATO member Turkey taking the side of Iran against NATO member US.

No one really believes that--OOPS!--those weapons just slipped across the Turkish border without the Paşas' approval, because that doesn't happen in Turkey.

From the Lousy Propaganda Department, we have reports of PKK suddenly declaring a ceasefire. There's a round-up of that stupidity here, with the standard variety from the AP at CNN. Why do I call this propaganda? Because they're putting it out in order to cover Turkish backside for a lack of invasion. Everyone knows that PKK's ceasefire went into effect on October 1 of last year. As mentioned in yesterday's post, in which Bianet quoted political analyst Kenan Kalyon: "He also commented on the end of the PKK ceasefire, saying that the army was never held to account for not ending its operations during the ceasefire period."

As noted in last Saturday's post:

"What they're holding is a rally against peace. Kurdish people just want peace ... The PKK offered a ceasefire and the state ignored this," said trader Hayri Gokce, 28.

Even the BS analysts at Stratfor are suddenly noticing the PKK ceasefire, which began on October 1, not June 12. The October 1 ceasefire still stands on the Kurdish side. The conditions for negotiation were published in August, 2006. Stratfor is engaging in outright lies, something consistent with its purpose of propagandizing the Deep State.

What does this sudden interest in PKK's ceasefire by Turkish and Western vermin mean? It means that lots of Mehmetçiks and officers are dying. That, in connection with the fact that there's a new OHAL and that the Paşas have renewed their labeling of all Kurds as "terrorists" means that things are getting way out of hand during an election year.

This is a ploy, by the Paşas, to cover their asses. Mark my words, there will be no end to this conflict. It will simply intensify in the new OHAL areas.

HPG will continue to defend itself as it has done since October 1, and Mehmetçiks will continue to die.

SERKEFTIN!

COUNTDOWN TO ANOTHER INEFFECTIVE INVASION?

"For many Turkish intellectuals, freedom of speech has become a struggle in North America as well as in our native country. What is happening to me now could happen to any scholar who dissents from the official state version of history."
~Taner Akcam.

Dogu Ergil has some information on possible upcoming Turkish operations in South Kurdistan, at Zaman:

After a meeting of retired Gen. Joseph Ralston, US special envoy on countering the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) -- a title that the Turkish press has transformed into “special envoy for counterterrorism” -- held on Jan. 29 with Massoud Barzani, the president of the Kurdistan regional government, and his vice president, Kosrat Rasul, Turkey has reportedly been given a green light from the US to attack PKK positions on the Kandil Mountain.

The same sources say that the military invasion will start in the beginning of April 2007. This was critical news that both the Turkish establishment and a part of the public have long been anticipating.

Will it bring relief as expected? Or will the operations get rid of the gangrene that is referred to as the “Kurdish problem”? That remains to be seen. However both the Americans and the Turkish establishment must be quite relieved to have convinced the Kurdish leaders of Iraq to give the green light to a Turkish military operation on Kandil, where the PKK contingency camps are and from which it conducts armed forays into Turkish soil.

Getting "rid of the gangrene that is referred to as the 'Kurdish problem'" will only happen when Turkey finally genocides the last Kurd from Turkish-occupied Kurdistan; however he does question the effectiveness of yet another Turkish invasion of South Kurdistan. He is correct that Qandil is far from the border with Turkish-occupied Kurdistan and that it's not likely that the TSK will engage in infantry operations in the mountains against PKK. This leaves only air operations as an option, something that is not likely to have much effect on the gerîlas but will certainly result in casualties in the civilian population, as happened during Turkish bombing of South Kurdistan during the so-called "safe haven" of Operation Northern Watch.

Ergil mentions the cooperation that Barzanî and Talabanî have given to the Ankara regime during its military operations in South Kurdistan against the Kurdish gerîlas. What he does not mention is that the Southern leadership's cooperation with the Ankara regime against Northern Kurds began long before the 1990s or even the founding of the PKK in 1978. That cooperation goes back at least to 1971.

Referencing a survey of the Turkish population, it appears that the majority of over 300,000 respondents do not want a military engagement. Given that the Ankara regime has never been successful in its 20-odd military pacifications of Northern Kurds, and given that military engagements will never solve what is essentially a political problem, it looks very much like the Ankara regime, with US backing, is setting itself up for failure yet again.

Ergil recognizes that "[t]he US infatuation with dealing with terrorism through military means has reinforced the traditional Turkish attitude and allows no other option than organizing cross-border operations as if the root cause of the problem lies in Iraq." The fact that one of Lockheed Martin's directors is the "PKK coordinator" for Turkey and it should be brilliantly clear exactly what it is that fuels the American "infatuation." It is none other than the worship of the Dollar, as discussed by former CIA Istanbul base deputy chief, Philip Giraldi, last week:

Companies that make armaments need war to be profitable. Constant war is even better, producing an unending flow of money. President George W. Bush's 2002 National Security Strategy is best of all – with its embrace of a vaguely defined preemptive war doctrine and the promise of a series of unilateral wars.

[ . . . ]

The military industrial complex also sustains and feeds off the Bush administration's so-called "global war on terror," or GWOT. Most experts on terrorism would agree that the GWOT is largely a fiction created to simplify a multifaceted problem and heighten fear so that the flow of taxpayer money will continue unabated. Fighting terrorism worldwide, even where it does not exist, isn't cheap, particularly as the increasing reliance on contractors is much more expensive per man-hour than using full-time government employees.

Giraldi estimates that the War on Terror, Inc. has cost the American taxpayer approximately $200 billion since 2001, a figure which does not include military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan. He figures that if there are 5,000 "terrorists" worldwide, the American taxpayer forks over an amazing $40 million per "terrorist." To reiterate, that figure does not include Iraq and Afghanistan. Giraldi adds the following observation:

No other country attacks terrorism in such a disproportionate fashion, and many of America's allies have successfully combated it using police and intelligence resources. . . . That's using an elephant to squash a fly. Considering that the fly can move a lot faster than the elephant, no victory is likely to happen soon, apart from the odd "Mission Accomplished" banner here and there.

Having lived and worked in Turkey, Giraldi might appreciate the irony of his remarks if they were spoken with Turkey as the subject instead of the US. According to Ergil, some 40,000 Mehmetciks will be involved in TSK operations in South Kurdistan in order to fight less than 4,000 Kurdish gerîlas which Turkey claims are resident in the South. I recommend a good long read of both articles. Giraldi in particular names names of think-tanks, corporations, and individuals associated with this for-profit orgy instigated by the military-industrial complex--along with Eisenhower's prophetic quote from 1961.

Over at ZNet, Taner Akcam has a recent article in which he explains the situation surrounding his detention by Canadian customs officials in February and the harassment he's undergone from Turkish fascists located in the US. He goes into detail about the efforts of three Gray Wolf organizations against him--the Assembly of Turkish American Associations, Tall Armenian Tale, and Turkish Forum--especially regarding their efforts to paint him as a "terrorist" by posting manufactured and photoshopped propaganda against him on sites like Wikipedia. They even tried to pass Taner Akcam off as a PKK gerîla.

But what does anyone expect of the same type of scum who murdered Hrant Dink?

Theoretically, it's always an honor to be passed off as a gerîla, but it's not so bad to be labeled a "terrorist-communist" either, especially when the labeling is done by the likes of the fascists at ATAA, Tall Armenian Tale, and Turkish Forum, but I understand the practical problems that such a label causes Akcam when dealing with Americans--especially the idiots working at American customs. After all, if it's not on American Idol, Americans don't know anything about it.

A last item also from ZNet, comes from Professor Edward Herman. Compare his piece on mass-murderer Richard Holbrooke with something posted recently on Rastî, about Holbrooke's visit to Maxmur. Keep in mind that Lockheed Martin's Joseph Ralston recently lied in his testimony to Congress regarding Kurds in general and Maxmur in particular. We also have Danny Fried's big lies about Maxmur during the recent US/Turkish attacks against Kurds in Europe.

It's clear that the US policy toward the refugees at Maxmur is to adopt the Ankara regime's lies about the camp being inhabited by "terrorists" and never mind the facts of the situation. The intention of the US is to forcibly repatriate the 11,000 refugees to Turkey as "terrorists."

We all know what that means, don't we?