ERBIL, Kurdistan Region — The US State Department has called for the coordination of Turkey, Iraq, and the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) to defeat the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), amid a Turkish military offensive on the PKK in Iraq including the Kurdistan Region in recent weeks. Turkey launched an air campaign dubbed Operation Claw-Eagle in the Kurdistan Region and the disputed territories in northern Iraq on June 15, with the stated aim of targeting PKK positions in those areas. Two days later, it launched commando-led ground offensive Operation Claw-Tiger into the Haftanin area of the Kurdistan Region, close to their shared border. At least five civilians have been killed in the Turkish airstrikes. The US "regrets any innocent loss of life" in Turkey's recent military action in Iraq, saying that operations "should respect Iraqi sovereignty," a state department spokesperson told Rudaw via email on Wednesday. Iraq’s foreign ministry summoned both the Turkish and Iranian ambassadors in Baghdad over airstrikes that have been conducted by both countries since Monday in northern areas of Iraq. Babakir Faqe, the spokesperson for the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) Ministry of Peshmerga Affairs, described Turkey's ongoing ground and aerial operation as "a blatant violation" of the sovereignty of Iraq – particularly that of the Kurdistan Region. An earlier KRG statement in response to the operation condemned “anyone for any reason if they martyr and harm people,” but did not explicitly condemn the Turkish offensive. "We recognize the legitimate security threat the PKK poses to Turkey and we urge Turkey to pursue joint counterterrorism cooperation with Iraq in a way that supports Iraqi sovereignty," added the spokesperson. "The United States calls on Turkey and Iraq, including the KRG, to work together to defeat the PKK," said the spokesperson, who also said "areas like Sinjar need to come under the full control of the federal government and its security forces, in coordination with the KRG." Though Operation Claw-Eagle began over two weeks ago, the State Department was yet to issue a comment on its NATO ally's military offensive into the Kurdistan Region until today. Criticism of the operations and the danger posed to civilians, particularly in Shingal - an area battered in recent years by Islamic State (ISIS) and home to hundreds of thousands of displaced Yezidis - had previously been issued by congressmen on an individual basis, and by the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom, a bipartisan government body. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo did, however, lament the loss of life caused by an alleged Turkish airstrike in the northern Syrian town of Kobane, which killed three women last week. Turkey’s current operations have already faced criticism from Saudi Arabia, UAE and the Arab League.
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