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- Date Began: February 21, 2008
- 240 Kurds
- 27 Turkish soldiers
- Turkey first threatened border raids in October 2007
- Turkey attacked Kurdish rebel positions with bomber jets in December 2007
- Turkey says Kurdish separatist rebels stage raids in southeast Turkey after crossing over from hideouts in Iraq
- Turkish military operations inside Iraq were reported before the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq in 2003
- There are between 20 and 25 million Kurds - one of the largest ethnic groups without its own state
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October 9, 2007: The Turkish government issued a statement approving potential military incursion into northern Iraq to neutralize resistance from Kurdish rebel separatists. On February 22, 2008, Turkish Troops crossed into Iraq in its biggest military incursion into Iraq since 2003. After this major new incursion, the Iraqi cabinet expressed its "rejection and condemnation" of the operation. The Kurdish rebels in northern Iraq are fighting for a homeland in Turkey. Turkey pulled out of Iraq on February 29.
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Troop Withdrawal
Having achieved their objective of showing "that northern Iraq is not a safe haven for them," Turkey removed their forces, and ended their offensive against the Kurdistan Workers' Party on February 29, 2007. -
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Turkish Troops in Iraq Questions
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With the Memorial holiday weekend coming up I have some questions; Why are we still in Iraq? And why are we still sending troops in there? 2 AnswersIraq is still a problem because there needs to be a clear exit strategy. The way the war was initiated, it now becomes very difficult to exit without leaving a ... read more -
Is Turkish one of the oldest languages? 2 AnswersTurkic language of Turkey is being spoken by 90% of the population. Turkish language was introduced in the 13th and 14th centuries. It doesnt have any relation... read more -
Is Amercia starting to pull troops from Iraq? 1 AnswerThe withdrawal, starting on June 30 is the beginning of a full American pullout by the end of 2011. read more -
Do you think violence will continue in Iraq after American troops withdrawal? 3 AnswersYes, violence in IRAQ will continue long after U.S. troops are out of there. It is a violent, rather primitive civilization with many warring factions. You woul... read more
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Turkish Troops in Iraq News
- Google News: Turkish Troops Iraq
- Guardian Unlimited: "Turkey Deploys Extra Troops to Iraq Border..." (2007)
- Reuters: Turkey Army Launches Land Offensive into Iraq (February 22, 2008)
- Washington Post: Iraq Sounds Alarm on Clashes in North (February 26, 2008)
- Al Jazeera: Iraq Denounces Turkey Incursion (February 26, 2008)
- BBC News: Iraq denounces Turkish offensive (February 26, 2008)
- "The Iraqi government has denounced a Turkish incursion into northern Iraq in some of the strongest terms heard since the operation began last week."
- Times Online: Iraq demands that Turkey withdraw its troops (February 26, 2008)
- New York Times: Turkish Military Tells of Incursion Into Iraq (February 22, 2008)
- Turkish Daily News: PKK hideouts in northern Iraq bombed (February 5, 2008)
- New York Times: Turkish Jets Bomb Northern Iraq (February 4, 2008)
Central Figures
- The Kurds
- Slate.com: The Gist: The Kurds (1996)
- Wikipedia: History of the Kurdish People
- The PKK
- New York Review: "The Uncontainable Kurds" (2007)
- Massoud Barzani