Iraq’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs summoned Ali Riza Guney to discuss “the continuous violations of the Turkish army, including the recent large-scale military operation which extended across [Duhok’s] Metina, Zap, Avashin, and Basyan areas,” read a statement from the ministry.
Ankara announced the launch of the Claw-Lock operation on Monday, its most recent offensive targeting Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) bases and hideouts in northern Duhok.
The PKK has bases in the Kurdistan Region’s mountains, and their presence “comes upon an agreement between the Turkish government and the aforementioned party [PKK],” the ministry claimed.
Turkey claimed that it "neutralized" 26 PKK fighters, with the PKK saying it has killed 44 Turkish soldiers. Turkish officials use the term "neutralize" to imply surrenders, killings, or capturing of PKK fighters.
“Iraq has the legal right to take the necessary and appropriate measures … in the face of such hostile and unilateral acts, which take place without coordination with the Iraqi government,” the ministry added, renewing its calls for the withdrawal of Turkish forces from the Iraqi land.
Turkey has conducted numerous cross-border aerial and ground operations against the PKK over the past decade. The PKK is an armed Kurdish group fighting for greater rights for Kurds in Turkey, considered a terrorist organization by Ankara.
The recent assault has caused ire among Iraqi officials, with Iraq’s government rejecting and condemning the incursion.
The Iraqi presidency on Tuesday said that Turkey’s recent military operation within Iraq’s borders in the Kurdistan Region is a “violation” of the country’s sovereignty and a “threat to its national security.”
Turkey has come under criticism from Baghdad, Erbil, Tehran, and the wider international community for violating Iraqi sovereignty, but Ankara continues to establish increasing numbers of bases and outposts in the mountains of Erbil and Duhok provinces.
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