Kurdish News

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Pro-PKK Roj TV Now Broadcasts in Sweden

Pro-PKK Roj TV Now Broadcasts in Sweden
By Cihan, Istanbul
Friday, May 05, 2006



The Denmark-based pro-PKK Roj TV has now started broadcasting in Sweden by cable TV.

The UPC company, the largest cable TV operator in Sweden, has reached an agreement to allow Roj TV to broadcast. The UPC has also some Turkish channels such as Show TV, TGRT and TRT-Int in their portfolio.


Saying that they had received "keen" interest regarding subscriptions to Roj TV, the Swedish TV company officials refused to give exact information about the number of subscribers due to their privacy policy.


Turkish Ambassador to Stockholm Necip Eguz said in relation to this fresh development that he would immediately investigate the issue before making further assessments.


Swedish officials have not made any formal statements regarding the issue so far although Sweden is among the countries that list the PKK as a terrorist organization.


The broadcasting of the pro-PKK Roj TV channel on Danish territory has caused a strain in relations between Turkey and Denmark.

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Tanks on Hakkari streets, nation shocked by terrrorist blast

Tanks on Hakkari streets, nation shocked by terrrorist blast

The New Anatolian / Ankara



Gendarmerie tanks drove through the streets in the southeastern city of Hakkari yesterday following Wednesday's tragic mine blast targeting children.

Tanks belonging to the Hakkari Commando Brigade passed through the main streets of Hakkari blasteding their sirens.

The terrorist Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) plotted a mine attack and set off the mines planted near the Fatih barracks in the city's Yeni district via remote control just as a service bus carrying the children of military officers passed by. The blast wounded eight soldiers, 11 students and two civilians and damaged both the children's shuttle bus and its escort vehicle.

A statement from the governor's office said that the students and civilians were taken to the state hospital, and the soldiers were taken for treatment at the military hospital. None of the injured were reported to be in critical condition.

After the explosion, security forces stepped up measures in the region and cordoned off the area where the blast occurred. Military operations were launched nearby.

The governor's office said in its statement that 16 suspects have been detained so far during the operations, one of whom was handed over the General Directorate of Security's Juvenile Department because he is underage.

The Pro-Kurdish Democracy Society Party (DTP), accused of supporting the terrorist Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), yesterday issued a statement condemning the blast. "We feel deep sorrow because of the mine blast that injured many people. Our sorrow has deepened because 11 children were injured in the blast. The DTP condemns such actions regardless of who carried them out," the statement read.

At the same time, in Diyarbakir's Hazro district security forces seized weapons and ammo allegedly destined for terrorist hands and detained one person.

In another written statement, the governor's office said that the operation was conducted after the security forces were tipped off that PKK collaborators were going to provide its Hazro members weapons and ammo.

At a time when rumors about cross-border operations into Iraq are widespread, troops in the southeast have started to conduct military drills.

Tanks operators from Cizre trained yesterday, while military officers took part in maneuvers in the area.

Turkish Armed Forces (TSK) troops have been deployed all along the country's borders with Iran and Iraq, due to the military's "spring operations" against the PKK. The operations were launched in line with increasing attacks by the organization.

The military turned its eyes towards Iran and Iraq after intensely reinforcing its troops along the borders for the first time since 1999.

BOX: Sezer condemns attack

President Ahmet Necdet Sezer yesterday condemned the attack against a shuttle bus carrying the children of military officers.

Saying that the terrorist group has been cruelly attacking the Turkish Republic and the nation's indivisible integrity, Sezer said that the PKK has once again shown its hideous face to the country by aiming its attacks against children.

"Those who mistakenly believe that they can harm the integrity of the country would do well to understand that they cannot attain their ulterior motives toward the nation, and that they lack the power to damage the country," said Sezer.

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Lagendijk calls on Kurdish politicians to break ties with PKK

Lagendijk calls on Kurdish politicians to break ties with PKK

The New Anatolian / Ankara



European Union-Turkey Joint Parliamentary Commission (JPC) co-Chair Joost Lagendijk on Thursday called on Kurdish politicians to break their ties with the terrorist Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK).

Speaking to the Anatolia news agency ahead of his visit to Diyarbakir, a mainly Kurdish city in the southeast, to participate in meeting entitled "Civil Rights in the Southeast," Lagendijk said that Turkey has to put an end to the PKK's violent tactics and expressed the hope that Kurdish politicians would contribute to this process by acting courageously.

"I want the Kurdish people to oppose the PKK's violence because embracing these outmoded tactics won't bring the Kurds to a better position. This is the message I'll convey to the Kurdish politicians in Diyarbakir," Lagendijk said.

Referring to a joint call from Kurdish and Turkish intellectuals on the PKK to renounce violence, Lagendijk urged Kurdish politicians to do the same. "I know that it's difficult for politicians to call on the PKK to lay down arms but we need brave Kurdish politicians who can break their ties with the past in order to look to the future. As a member of the European side, the only thing I can do is to support those who try to find solutions to this problem without resorting to violence. But, in the end, the Kurds will determine their own fate."

Denouncing the violent attack that targeted children and wounded 11 in Hakkari late Wednesday, Lagendijk said, "Resorting to violence is not a way to be followed in democratic societies, whether the aim is legitimate or not."

'EU doesn't want partition of Turkey'

Lagendijk stated that despite the existence of supporters and opponents of Kurdish rights in Turkey, the EU doesn't want a partition of Turkey and supports the country's accession to the bloc as a whole with its current borders.

"I was astonished when I first heard that some circles in Turkey are claiming that the EU and the U.S. want a partition of the country. But after reading about the last days of the Ottoman Empire and the establishment of the Turkish Republic, I understand the Turks' fears," said Lagendijk, but underlined that those fears are baseless in today's conditions.

'Kurds already part of EU'

Dutch parliamentarian Lagendijk stated that most Kurds have already become a part of the EU, adding that the remainder will sooner or later and understand the benefits of membership in the bloc.

"Most Kurds will realize that Turkey will offer them and their children a better future. Developments in the southeast are an indicator of Turkey's ability to provide them with a better life," Lagendijk said, stressing that a partition of the country would neither benefit the Kurds nor the 25-nation bloc.

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PKK threatens response to possible Turkish operation

PKK threatens response to possible Turkish operation

Mustafa Gokturk - The New Anatolian / Erbil



The terrorist Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) threatened on Wednesday to deliver a "dirty" response to a possible Turkish military operation against the organization's bases in northern Iraq.

A leading figure in the terrorist organization, Murat Karayilan, made the statement to members of the international press in northern Iraq. However journalists from Turkey were barred from participating in the press conference by the PKK.

Karayilan accused Turkey and Iran of amassing forces near their borders with Iraq and brought up speculation of coordinated operations against the PKK. Karayilan further added, "If Iran and Turkey continue to attack PKK bases or those of other Kurdish factions, the PKK will launch a guerrilla war against Turkey as it has forces in Turkish areas." Karayilan said the PKK isn't operating in Iran but that its Iranian wing has bases along the Iraq-Iran border.

More than 30,000 people have been killed since the PKK began its terrorist attacks, which have targeted both military and civilians, in Turkey since 1984. In the last three months, a PKK-affiliated group that calls itself the Kurdistan Freedom Falcons has claimed responsibility for dozens of bombings, particularly in cities in the west of the country. It's urging Turkish Kurds to bring "fear and chaos'' to the country of 70 million and has posted bomb-making instructions on its website alongside praise for suicide bombers.

Turkey has long been asking its NATO ally the U.S. to launch a military operation against the PKK presence in northern Iraq.
Condoleezza Rice, the U.S. secretary of state, pledged last month only modest assistance for Turkey's efforts and expressed opposition to Turkish unilateral cross-border operations. Rice asked Ankara to revive the trilateral mechanism between the Turkish, U.S. and Iraqi governments to counter the PKK.

Some 5,000 terrorists are believed to be operating out of camps in the mountains of northern Iraq.

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US Warns Europe to Silence PKK Media

US Warns Europe to Silence PKK Media
By Foreign News Desk, Istanbul
Saturday, May 06, 2006

As the local Kurdish Administration in Northern Iraq hardens its criticisms over the terrorist organization Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), the US administration continues diplomatic pressure regarding the issue.

US Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for European and Eurasian Affairs at the State Department, Kurt Volker, said Friday, America demanded that related European countries close the media organs broadcast on behalf of the PKK in Europe.

Speaking at the US House of Representatives Volker said Turkey and the US join in efforts to determine the terrorist organizations and networks that have links with PKK. He and his delegation, said Volker, visited European capitals calling for the closure of PKK-related media channels. Despite all of Turkey's initiatives Denmark refuses to close down Roj-TV, the PKK's the largest media foundation.

The local Kurdish administration in Northern Iraq asked the PKK not to use northern Iraqi territory as a base for its attacks against Turkey.

Imad Ahmad, the Iraqi Kurdistan Patriotic Union (PUK) authority, warned the PKK not to use their land as a base for attacks on Turkey and Iran. Ahmad's statement came after PKK Leader Murat Karayilan said, "If the operations against PKK continue, our response to Iran and Turkey will be harsh."

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Talabani’s PUK warns PKK against fighting with Turkey, Iran

Talabani’s PUK warns PKK against fighting with Turkey, Iran

Saturday, May 6, 2006

ANKARA - TDN with AFP

Authorities in northern Iraq warned members of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) against waging war with Turkey or Iran from Iraqi territory.

“They [PKK] are on our land. We want them to respect the law and not use our territory to stage attacks against Iran or Turkey,” said Imad Ahmed, deputy prime minister of the northern Iraqi province of Sulaimaniya.

“We want them to leave our country, but in peace, not in war. If they want to stay they have to use politics, not weapons.”

Ahmed, a member of Iraqi President Jalal Talabani's Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) party, said the region hoped to have good relations with Turkey and Iran.

“We do not want any problems with Iran or Turkey, and I condemn any attacks on the two from Iraqi territory,” Ahmed told Agence France-Presse in an interview.

The Turkish army reserves the right to venture into Iraq to pursue PKK members based there, but has denied reports that such operations are already under way.

Turkey has amassed thousands of troops along the border with Iraq for what officials describe as a large-scale effort to prevent increasing infiltrations by PKK militants based in mountainous hideouts in northern Iraq.

Ankara has long urged Washington and Baghdad to root out the PKK from northern Iraq, but it has been told that violence in other parts of the conflict-torn country is their priority.

Turkey's Foreign Minister Abdullah Gül on Thursday praised Iran's “serious” efforts to curb PKK members, while warning Iraqi Kurds that the PKK will one day threaten their stability if they continue to find refuge in northern Iraq.

Thousands of PKK members are based in mountain hideouts in Kurdish-held northern Iraq, and also often used Iran to infiltrate into Turkey.

Baghdad said over the weekend that Iranian forces entered several kilometers into Iraq and shelled PKK positions; Iran, which has its own restive Kurdish community, neither confirmed nor denied the claim.

“The terrorist organization is a threat not only to Turkey, but also to Iran. The Iranians have understood this and that is why they give great importance to this issue and are engaged in a very serious effort,” Gul said in an interview with NTV television.

The outlawed Party of Free Life of Kurdistan (PJAK/Pejak), described as the Iranian wing of the PKK, has been blamed for many of the armed attacks last year that killed at least 120 Iranian police and wounded scores of others.

The United States on Tuesday urged Turkey to refrain from a unilateral move to send troops into Iraq's territory to hunt down fleeing PKK members. The U.S. statement came after the Turkish military reiterated that Turkey reserved the right to enter Iraq in hot pursuit of the PKK.

On Thursday in Ankara, U.S. Ambassador to Turkey Ross Wilson, speaking with a group of journalists, reiterated the same message, “It would be unwise for Turkey to carry out cross-border operations.”

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Öcalan's appeal rejected by court

Öcalan's appeal rejected by court

Saturday, May 6, 2006

PKK leader’s call for retrial refused


ANKARA – Turkish Daily News


The Ankara 11th Criminal Court on Friday rejected an application for the retrial of Abdullah Öcalan.

Turkish prosecutors had argued they couldn't retry Öcalan, serving a life sentence since 1999, under current laws regardless of a European court finding that he was unjustly convicted. Öcalan demanded a retrial in January after the European Court of Human Rights ruled last year that his trial was unfair on technical grounds.

Öcalan's demand for a review of his sentence poses a legal challenge to the government because current laws do not allow for his retrial, although Ankara is under pressure to comply with the rulings of the Strasbourg-based court.

The European court ruled in May that the court that convicted Öcalan was not impartial because it included a military judge during part of the trial and because Öcalan and his lawyers lacked sufficient time and opportunity to prepare their defense.

Ankara has said it will respect the ruling, but authorities have so far failed to say how they will proceed.

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Northern Iraqi Kurdish Authority Unites

Northern Iraqi Kurdish Authority Unites
By Cihan News Agency, Erbil
Monday, May 08, 2006



Two Kurdish-led local authorities in North Iraq combined under the umbrella of a single government.

The local parliament granted approval to the cabinet after it was prepared by Najirvan Barzani, an official of the Iraqi Kurdish Democracy Party (KDP).

The Erbil parliamentary gathering ended with unanimous approval of the formation of a single government for the autonomous area of the north, a move that annuls the dual governmental system.

This marks the end of the 10-year joint authority in North Iraq. For the first time, Erbil and Suleymaniye will emerge from the authority of Massoud Barzani and Iraqi President Jalal Talabani respectively, to unite under the umbrella of a single authority.

Najirvan Barzani vowed to initiate efforts to establish sound links with neighboring and bordering countries after he is voted prime minister.

The extraordinary meeting at the 111-seat parliament gave way to the appointment of Omar Fattah as deputy prime minister. Mr. Fattah is a member of the Talabani-led Iraqi Kurdistan Patriotic Union (PUK).

At this meeting, a group of 27 ministries undertook responsibility for the local authority. The IKDP has 11 of the 27 ministries, and the IKYB has 11 ministries, the remaining five ministries have been distributed to other political groups.

United States Ambassador to Bagdat (Baghdad) Zalmay Khalilzad, former Turkish born deputy Hasim Hasimi, Serafettin Elci, a former minister of public works, Selim Sadak, a former member of the pro-Kurdish Democratic Party (DEP), Deputy President of Hakpar Resit Deli, and Mehmet Ali Eren attended the cabinet voting session.

KDP and PUK officials agreed on January 21 to form a single government.

The Najirvan Barzani government will be in power until 2007 when a referendum of paramount importance to the future of Kerkuk (Kirkuk) will be held.

After the referendum is held, efforts will be made to form a new government.

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Erdoğan:''Kill them all'' then ''take care of them''

Erdogan in Diyarbakir: We must all take care of our children

The New Anatolian / Ankara



Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan over the weekend criticized the abuse of children by the terrorist Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) during demonstrations, saying, "Those who are supported by terrorism still continue their abuse, particularly against children."

Speaking at a provincial party branch congress in Diyarbakir, Erdogan said that Turkey's problems can't be thought of as distinct from the problems of Diyarbakir, and Diyarbakir's problems can't be thought as distinct from the problems of Turkey.

The last time the prime minister visited Diyarbakir was last August, when he said Turkish citizenship should be the common, primary identity of everyone living in Turkey. Erdogan didn't touch upon that issue during his speech over the weekend. He made a call for unity regardless of ethnic identity.

"As long as we walk together as Turks, Kurds, Circassians, Lazes, Georgians, Bosniacs and Albanians, without discriminating against any particular ethnic group, nobody will be able to divide us," said Erdogan.

The prime minister addressed Diyarbakir residents in his speech, saying, "While protecting peace and stability, you've also protected the republic and democracy. For that I would like to congratulate Diyarbakir residents once more."

Underlining that democracy and growth can't be thought as separate issues, Erdogan said that domestic peace, unity and solidarity are the priorities of the Justice and Development (AK) Party government.

"The government is continuing its fight against terrorism and its democratic progress and development plans," said Erdogan, adding, "We will block terrorism with our unity and solidarity, and we will work to make this country more free, more democratic, more wealthy and happier. We believe that the state should take its power from its close ties with the public. That's our understanding of administration."

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Lagendijk: End military ops in southeast

Lagendijk: End military ops in southeast

The New Anatolian / Ankara



The European Union is against the military operations being carried out by the Turkish Armed Forces (TSK) in the east and southeast, said EU Joint Parliamentary Commission Co-Chair Joost Lagendijk over the weekend.

Attending a roundtable discussion in Diyarbakir for a project entitled "Civilian Rights in the Southeast," Lagendijk also condemned terrorist attacks committed by the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK).

He said that there's no room for violence where the improvement of Kurdish rights is concerned, and underlined that all forms of terrorist activities should be condemned.

Stressing that there are differences between Turkey and Europe's definition of "minority," Lagendijk acknowledged that he's aware that the Kurds don't define themselves as a minority.

Lagendijk stated that, according to the EU definition, the Kurds are a minority because many rights have not been granted to them. First of all, he said, the same rights granted to minorities in Europe should be granted to the Kurds.

"Your definition of a minority is different from ours; there's a different perception of the concept. For us, minorities have a right to their own TV channels, courses in their own languages and their own language rights," he said.

Lagendijk explained that the EU is working towards finding a way for solutions found for Turks living in France and Germany to become valid for minorities in Turkey.

According to Lagendijk, democracy is the only way to solve the Kurdish problem, adding that there's no room for violence in a solution to the problem.

Lagendijk said that another controversial issue is whether there are enough people in Parliament to represent the Kurds.

He said that he believes there are many pro-Kurdish deputies in Parliament and that he wasn't specifically referring to Kurdish-origin deputies since there have to be other politicians working for the Kurds' rights. He stated that the 10 percent national election threshold prevents politicians who work for the improvement of Kurdish rights from winning seats in Parliament, and recalled that the European Parliament has asked Turkey to make it possible for parties that get 5-6 percent of votes to be represented in Parliament.

Lagendijk suggested that Kurdish politicians should encourage a policy which rules out violence because as long as it continues there will be no investment in the region.

Calling on the government to implement long-term economic projects in the region, Lagendijk suggested that the government should cooperate with local mayors on projects designed for the region.