Turkish ambassador criticizes Iraqi government for failing to serve Turkmens

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region — The Turkish ambassador to Baghdad criticized the Iraqi government on Tuesday for failing to provide schools, hospitals, and electricity to Turkmens in Amirli town, Salahaddin province. He wondered if the country considers the ethnic minority as part of its population. 

“We are in Amirli… It has no school, no hospital, and no electricity. We saw Turkmens as part of Iraq. Does the Iraqi state see Turkmen as part of Iraq?” wrote the newly-inaugurated ambassador Ali Riza Guney in a tweet.

On the same day, the ambassador made a visit to Turkmen leaders and tribesmen in areas where Turkmens live, such as Amirli, Tuz Khurmatu, Daquq, and Kirkuk city.

Amirli was controlled by the Islamic State (ISIS) in 2014. It is currently controlled by Iraqi security forces, including Turkmen militia groups affiliated with the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF, or Hashd al-Shaabi). 

Iraqi Turkmens are divided between Shiites and Sunnis.

Scores of areas in Iraq have suffered from a lack of schools and hospitals as well as basic services for decades, especially after ISIS controlled swathes of Iraqi land in 2014. 

Relations between Ankara and Turkey have seen highs and lows in recent years. The continued bombardment of the Kurdistan Region by the Turkish army on the ground due to the presence of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) has harmed the relations of both countries. Iraq has summoned the Turkish former ambassador more than once over the bombardments. 

Turkmens are a Turkic ethnic group, mainly living in Turkmenistan. Their exact population in Iraq is unknown. 

Turkey has provided aid to Iraqi Turkmens in the past, including coronavirus-related aid.

Turkish officials have also defended Turkmens publicly, with Turkish former PM Binali Yildirim describing the multi-ethnic city of Kirkuk - considered by Kurds as their Jerusalem - as “a Turkmen city.”