Turkey - the country not the bird

[robert99]

Jarablus Military Council and Turkish army agree on temporary truce - Iraqi News
A US official declared on Tuesday that the Turkish troops and the Kurdish fighters have come to an ‘unofficial agreement’ to ceasefire in northern Syria.

The Central Command spokesman Colonel John Thomas said, “In the last several hours, we have received assurance that all parties involved are going to stop shooting at each other and focus on the ISIS threat.”

“It’s a loose agreement for at least the next couple of days and we are hoping that it will solidify,” he added.

 

[robert99]

http://rudaw.net/english/world/300820161
The international community, Europeans especially, are concerned about Turkey’s military intervention in Jarablus and its targeting of Kurdish forces in northern Syria through direct airstrikes and via groups within the Free Syrian Army (FSA), which Turkey backs.

Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) believe that Turkey’s main goal in Syria is to target the Kurds, and they have accused it of backing ISIS in Syria.

The EU should be united and convey a clear message to Turkey, one MEP told Rudaw. “There are many ways to put pressure on Turkey. For example, the EU is a main partner of Turkey economically. We can press on Turkey. We should not only make threats but we can take other steps to put pressure on Turkey.”

Another MP agreed that economic pressures got be applied to force Turkey to retreat from Syria. “There are many ways to press on Turkey, such economic ones, to make Turkey withdraw from Syria,” Michael Gahler told Rudaw.

France’s president has also criticized Turkey’s incursion and said it will escalate the conflict.

“There won’t be any victorious struggle against terror if the crises that are the causes of terrorism are not resolved,” Francois Hollande said during an address to French ambassadors in Paris on Tuesday, according to Euronews.

 

[robert99]

Syria war: Turkey hits out at US over Kurds comments - BBC News
Ankara summoned the US ambassador on Wednesday over comments the foreign ministry called "unacceptable".

A US military spokesman had expressed hopes on Tuesday that, rather than see Turkey pursue Kurdish fighters, "all parties involved are going to stop shooting at each other and focus" on IS.

"Turkey is a sovereign state, it is a legitimate state," said EU Affairs Minister Omer Celik, echoing comment by Turkey's foreign ministry.

"To suggest it is on a par with a terrorist organisation and suggest there are talks between them, that a deal has been reached between them, this is unacceptable."

Hurriyet reported that US ambassador John Bass was summoned to the foreign ministry on Wednesday morning.

 

[robert99]

Iran asksTurkey to halt military operations in Syria - Iraqi News
Iran has called on Turkey to immediately stop its military operation in northern Syria in order to avoid more complications.

Spokesperson of the Iranian Foreign Ministry Bahram Qassemi said, “The continued Turkish presence on Syrian soil will lead to further complicate the situations in the region,” adding, “Adopting approaches that defy the political authority of a country’s central government is not acceptable.”

“Despite the fact that fighting terrorism and trying to establish security in the region is an important principle sought by peace-loving nations of the region, it should not violate countries’ sovereignty,” he added.

 

[robert99]

PressTV-Turkish interior minister quits amid turmoil
Turkish Interior Minister Efkan Ala has quit his post in the wake of apparent intelligence failures and public criticism over a string of militant attacks as well as the failed July 15 coup attempt.

Prime Minister Binali Yildirim announced the resignation in a brief statement broadcast on Turkish television channels, without providing any reason for the decision.

A senior Turkish official said Ala’s “inability to meet expectations in some areas, primarily security,” together with some of the appointments had made while in post had raised concerns.

 

[robert99]

http://rudaw.net/english/middleeast/syria/01092016
Turkey sent more tanks and armored vehicles into northwestern Syria on Thursday to reinforce its soldiers there, a military source told the Turkish press.

The source, speaking on condition of anonymity, also confided to Turkey’s state-run Anadolu news that more tanks also amassed on the Turkish border with Syria.

Also in northwestern Syria, the Turkish Army defused improvised explosives devices (IEDs) planted by Islamic State (ISIS) militants.

Meanwhile, three Turkish soldiers were wounded on Tuesday when their tank was fired at from west of the town of Jarablus – thought to be ISIS remnants still operating in the area.

Also on Saturday, one Turkish soldier was killed and three wounded when their two tanks came under rocket fire south of Jarablus.

 

[robert99]

I guessed this was on the cards a week ago (OK, I'm a Smarty Pants too)
http://www.nytimes.com/2016/09/02/w...column-region&region=top-news&WT.nav=top-news
Kurds Fear the U.S. Will Again Betray Them, in Syria
“These operations by Turkey are obviously more against the Kurds than Daesh,” said Mahmoud Othman, a prominent Iraqi Kurdish politician, using the Arabic acronym for the Islamic State. He added: “People are afraid now. People are really afraid of what could happen in the end.”

Drawing on history, Kurds see themselves as the playthings of world powers, used in proxy fights when it serves someone’s interest and then discarded.

However, the United States also figures prominently in that historical memory of betrayal. In 1975, after the C.I.A. worked with Iran to supply weapons to the Kurds to fight Mr. Hussein’s regime, Secretary of State Henry A. Kissinger abruptly pulled the plug after a reconciliation between Tehran and Baghdad.

“In 1975, the same betrayal of the Kurds happened,” said Hasos Hard, a Kurdish journalist in northern Iraq, when asked about his reaction to the American support for Turkey’s Syria incursion.

Even though the United States has funneled weapons to the Syrian Kurds and provided them with military training, it has not established ties to the militia’s political wing, the Democratic Union Party, because of Turkish concerns. Nor has it promised them anything beyond military support in the fight against the Islamic State, other than expressions of support for a Kurdish role at the negotiating table when, or if, serious peace talks get underway.

(see on 1991 uprising in Iraq too 1991 uprisings in Iraq - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia )

 

[robert99]

Navy Seals as peacekeepers?!
http://rudaw.net/english/middleeast/syria/02092016
Kurdish forces of the Peoples Protection Units (YPG) have “largely” returned to the east bank of the Euphrates River and things are now “calm” between Kurdish and Turkish forces, confirmed the US Department of Defense (DoD), who consider both Kurds and Turkey as critical partners in the region despite reports that US forces are playing a peacekeeping role between the two forces in northern Syria.
That calm may be due to US Special Forces reportedly playing peacekeeper on the ground. According to Kurdish affairs analyst Mutlu Civiroglu, Colonel Hijo, head of the Jarablus Military Council, has said that the US Special Forces are deployed between council and Turkish forces “to ensure ceasefire holds.”

 

[robert99]

PressTV-Turkey must swiftly end Syria op: Iran
Iran has once again expressed concern over the continuation of Turkey’s military incursion into Syria, urging all countries to respect the Arab country's national sovereignty and territorial integrity.

Turkey says the incursion is meant to engage the Takfiri Daesh terrorists in the Syrian-Turkish border area as well as Kurdish fighters, who were themselves fighting Daesh.

Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim said on August 31 his country’s troops were to stay in Syria as long as “threats” against the Turkish state remained.

Joining the incursion, which has so far cost the lives of dozens of civilians, have been hordes of militants that Ankara has been supporting against the central government in Damascus for years.

 

[robert99]

Syrian Kurds vow to fight to the death to stop Turkey 'invading' their territory
The Syrian Kurdish leadership vows to defend their de facto state in north east Syria to the end, but is fearful of a growing understanding between the Syrian and Turkish governments in opposition to Kurdish separatism at a time when US support for the Kurds is faltering.

In an exclusive interview with The Independent, a senior Syrian Kurdish official says that the Kurds will fight to the death to stop Turkey “invading the region” and speaks of possible reconciliation between Damascus and Ankara on the Kurdish question.
http://rudaw.net/english/world/030920161
The United States, United Kingdom, and anti-ISIS coalition members condemned Turkish army attacks on the Kurdish Peoples Protection Units (YPG) and stated that their support of Turkey’s incursion in Syria remains conditional. Russia and Damascus have remained silent on the events.

(PKK in Syria in the future? or should they join up with ISIS?!)

 

[robert99]

Now that the Turks have Putin on their side, they can go into Syria without repercussions -
IS conflict: Turkey sends more tanks into Syria - BBC News
Turkey has sent more tanks into northern Syria, in an operation against the Islamic State (IS) group, Turkish media reports say.

The tanks crossed the border near the Turkish town of Kilis and journalists later heard firing and saw plumes of smoke rising on Syrian territory.

The incursion took place about 55km (34 miles) south-west of Jarablus, where Turkey last week launched its first major incursion into Syria since the conflict started.
PressTV-'Turkish tanks roll into northern Syria'

 

[robert99]

Turkey beefs up military presence in Syria | News | DW.COM | 03.09.2016
Turkey increased its military presence in Syria on Saturday, sending tanks into the Cobanbey district to back opposition fighters combating IS.
Turkey's most recent incursion came when around 20 of its tanks crossed from the Turkish border town of Elbeyli into the village of al-Rai to support rebel fighters. Ankara also sent a host of other armored vehicles into the area in addition to tanks, AFP news agency reported.

 

[robert99]

http://english.alarabiya.net/en/New...tificial-state-in-northern-Syria-PM-says.html
Turkey will never allow the formation of an “artificial state” in northern Syria, Prime Minister Binali Yildirim said on Sunday, referring to the US-backed Kurdish fighters whose advance Ankara is now aiming to stop.

“We will never allow the formation of an artificial state in the north of Syria,” Yildirim said in a speech in the southeastern city of Diyarbakir, where he announced an investment programme to rebuild parts of the largely Kurdish region that have been destroyed by security operations.

Yildirim’s comments echoed those of President Tayyip Erdogan at the G20 gathering of world leaders in China, who told reporters following a meeting with US President Barack Obama: “It is our wish that a terror corridor not be formed across our southern border”.

Erdogan has repeatedly said that Turkey’s allies should not be making a distinction between ISIS and the YPG as both groups pose a threat to Turkey.
(Putin's pulled a fast move here to get Turkey to do his work after the Iran base debacle. Now Putin does not have to worry about dead soldiers coming home before Sept 18 elections. Obama's only card is the Kurds and they seemd hard pressed on all fronts.)

 

[robert99]

Erdogan urges Putin and Obama for no-fly zone in Syria - Iraqi News
PressTV-Turkey renews call for 'safe zone' in Syria
Erdogan talks 'safe zone' in Syria with US, Russia | News | DW.COM | 05.09.2016
Turkey urged the United States and Russia to establish a no-fly zone in order to create a ‘safe zone’ in Syria.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said he had raised the idea in his meetings with Russian President Vladimir Putin and US President Barak Obama at the G20 leaders’ summit in Hangzhou, China.

Speaking in China, Erdogan on Monday said, “A no-fly zone could be set up there, and that was my suggestion to both Obama and Putin. This could be achieved with the coalition forces. We are in an effort to take this step.”

Meanwhile, the Turkish president said Ankara was working with US-led coalition forces and Moscow to instate a ceasefire in Aleppo for the Muslim holiday Eid al-Adha, expected around September 11.

"We are currently cooperating with Russia in the region of Aleppo. We are working for a ceasefire to be declared in the region … and [have] the people of Aleppo saved from the bombs," Erdogan said.

 

[robert99]

What is the Turkish army really doing in Iraq?
What is the Turkish army really doing in Iraq?
Beyond its direct engagement against IS, the Turkish army is also training and arming Hashd al-Watani, a predominantly Arab Sunni militia created by Atheel al-Nujaifi, the former governor of Nineveh province and, along with his highly influential family, a close Turkish ally.

“We train them for close quarter combat, which will take place in Mosul in the near future,” the Turkish soldier said, adding that local fighters were all provided with AK-74s and ammunition.

In a country where the number of militiamen fighting for a religion, an ethnic group or a region seems to be growing by the day, Hashd al-Watani’s leaders do not shy away from voicing their ultimate prize: capturing the IS de-facto capital in Iraq. “Mosul is ours. If we get inside, all of it will be for us,” Brig. Gen. Mohamed Tahma Talib, who is commanding Hashd al-Watani, told al-Monitor.

To be able to reach the outskirts of the city, Hashd al-Watani is working in cooperation with the Kurdish peshmerga, the army of the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG).

According to peshmerga Gen. Bahram Arif Yassin, stationed at Bashiqa Mountain, the Kurdish forces will seize the town of Bashiqa and advance toward Mosul, paving the way for the Ankara-backed fighters.

“We will recapture the area around Mosul. We will [stop] 2 kilometers [1 mile] from the city. And then,” Yassin said, “we will open a way for Hashd al-Watani to go inside Mosul.”
(Canon foder ! )

 

[robert99]

http://rudaw.net/english/middleeast/syria/080920162
US: We’re working with Turkey and SDF on Raqqa plan
The US spokesperson for Operation Inherent Resolve, the US-led global anti-ISIS coalition, stated on his official Twitter that the United States is coming up with a “gameplan for Raqqa” with both Turkey and the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF).

But the US has an uphill battle to get its two allies to work together.

Turkey’s Defense Minister, Fikri Isik, said that his country supported a plan to retake Raqqa from the Islamic State but that Kurdish forces should not be central to it. The Kurdish Peoples Protection Units (YPG) are the dominant force within the SDF.

"What Turkey focuses and insists on is that instead of solely the YPG forces, the operations must be conducted, as the core of the operatives, by the local people of the region, instead of the YPG," Isik said in an interview with Reuters after a meeting with US Defense Minister Ash Carter.

"Turkey will not allow YPG forces to extend their territory and gain power by using the Daesh [ISIS] operations as an excuse."

 

[robert99]

http://english.alarabiya.net/en/New...ted-plot-against-British-German-missions.html
Turkish authorities detained four people in an investigation into a potential threat against British and German diplomatic missions but found no links between the suspects and any terrorist groups, the state-run Anadolu Agency said on Friday.

The investigation was prompted by intelligence about a potential ISIS threat against the missions, Anadolu said, in a report also published by broadcaster Haberturk.

Britain’s foreign office said earlier that the embassy in Ankara had been shut on Friday for unspecified security reasons. The Germany embassy said on its website that its missions were only open for limited operations after a four-day public holiday this week.

 

[robert99]

http://www.nytimes.com/2016/09/17/world/middleeast/us-troops-syria-isis.html
Capt. Jeff Davis, a Pentagon spokesman, said in an email that the American Special Operations forces “are accompanying Turkish and vetted Syrian opposition forces as they continue to clear territory” from the Islamic State near Jarabulus and al-Rai.

The decision to send the American forces into northern Syria with the Turkish military came last week, one American official said, shortly after a meeting between Turkey’s president, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, and President Obama during the G-20 summit meeting in China.

American officials described details of the deployment on the condition of anonymity because of the diplomatic and national security sensitivities of the mission.

Turkish news outlets had reported that Mr. Erdogan suggested that his country was ready to carry out a joint operation with the United States to fight the Islamic State in its de facto capital, Raqqa, in northern Syria.
(The Kurds are so screwed)

 

[robert99]

http://english.alarabiya.net/en/New...-of-Syrian-Kurdish-fighters-from-Manbij-.html
A significant portion of Kurdish YPG militia fighters who were in the northern Syrian town of Manbij are withdrawing to the east of the Euphrates river in a move welcomed by Turkey, Deputy Prime Minister Numan Kurtulmus
told reporters on Monday.

Ankara has demanded that the YPG forces move east of the Euphrates, viewing the group as closely linked to Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) militia fighting in southeast Turkey and deeming both groups terrorist organizations.

 

[robert99]

http://english.alarabiya.net/en/New...ohnson-arrives-in-Turkey-to-meet-Erdogan.html
Turkish officials have played down possible setback in the two countries’ relationship, saying British-Turkish ties are too important to be hostage to Johnson’s statements.

A spokesperson for the British embassy in Ankara told AFP that Johnson had arrived in Turkey, where he is to meet Erdogan and Prime Minister Binali Yildirim, as well as Syrian opposition groups.

He is also due to visit the Turkish parliament in the capital Ankara which was extensively damaged by airstrikes on the night of the failed July 15 coup, Turkish officials said. Johnson has made headlines in Turkish media because of his Turkish great-grandfather Ali Kemal, who was a politician and a journalist in the 1900s.

http://english.alarabiya.net/en/New...Crown-Prince-to-visit-Turkey-on-Thursday.html
Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Muhammad Bin Naif, deputy premier and minister of interior, will visit Turkey on Sept. 29-30, a Saudi Gazette news report has revealed.

During the two-day visit, the Crown Prince is expected to hold talks with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Prime Minister Binali Yildirim and senior government officials on ways to fight terrorism, means to further deepen the bilateral relations and cooperation in all fields.