Turkey Announces Flight Ban on Iraq’s Sulaimaniyah Airport, Alleging PKK Support
The Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) party, which controls the Iraqi Kurdistan city of Sulaimaniyah, has historically had close ties to Turkey’s Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK); Turkey said the airport has been used to smuggle weapons to the PKK and would therefore be closed for six months, which will damage the region’s economy (Al-Monitor)
Meanwhile, Turkish authorities arrested a journalist under an anti-terrorism law, saying he promoted PKK propaganda (RSF)
Erdogan Calls on Sweden to End Kurdish Protests
The Turkish president called Sweden’s change to its terrorism laws “meaningless” and said Sweden must stop protests by supporters of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) before Turkey accepts its bid to join NATO (Reuters)
Turkish Drone Strike Kills Three, Wounds One in Kurdish-Controlled Syria
The victims were three local Kurdish officials and their driver; Turkey did not comment on the strike but said it killed a top People’s Protection Unit (YPG) official in the area in its ongoing struggle with the Kurdish autonomous region over alleged links to the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) in Turkey (Reuters)
Kurdish PKK Declares End to Ceasefire with Turkey
The Kurdistan Worker’s Party (PKK) cited an uptick in Turkish attacks on Kurdish fighters in Syria and Iraq, as well as the continued incarceration of PKK leader Abdullah Ocalan, as reasons for ending the ceasefire, which it unilaterally announced following devastating earthquakes earlier this year (Al-Monitor)
Over One Hundred Arrested in Pre-Election ‘Counter-Terror’ Operation
Turkish police detained at least one hundred and ten people suspected of supporting the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), including pro-Kurdish activists, journalists, and lawyers, in raids conducted across twenty-one provinces in what the police called a “counter-terror” operations (AFP)
Prominent Kurdish Leader Wants to Disarm PKK
The former co-leader of Turkey’s pro-Kurdish Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP), Selahattin Demirtas, pledged from prison to work with the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) to give up its armed resistance to Turkish rule if a new administration takes office in May; Demirtas has been held in prison on terror charges since 2016 (VOA)
Kurdish Mourners in Northern Syria Gather to Protest Killing of Family
Thousands of funeral attendees demanded justice for four members of a Kurdish family who were killed by Turkey-backed rebels during a celebration of the Nowruz holiday on Monday (MEE)
Three Kurds Shot Dead
According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, the Ahrar Sharqiya group, Turkey-backed opposition fighters in Syria, shot and killed three ethnic Kurds and wounded four others; the shooting was near the northwestern town of Jinderis during holiday calibrations (AP)
Turkey Kills Istanbul Bomb Suspect
In an operation in northern Syria, Turkish forces killed the suspect behind the Istanbul Street bombing that killed six and wounded more than eighty others in November (AP)
Bomb Attack Injures Nine in Turkey
A road-side bomb was detonated along a highway near the predominantly Kurdish-populated city of Diyarbakir as an armored police vehicle passed it, injuring the nine occupants; five people have been detained in connection to the attack (AP)
Finland Considers Arms Exports to Turkey
Finland’s defense minister indicated his willingness to provide arms to Turkey on a case-to-case basis as an inducement for Turkish support for Finland’s NATO bid (Reuters)
Turkey is the only member opposed to Finland’s accession to NATO; Ankara has accused Helsinki of hosting Kurdish militants (CNBC)
Pentagon Warns Turkey Against Planned Military Operation in Northern Syria
On a phone call, U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin told Turkish Defense Minister Hulusi Akar that Washington strongly opposes the proposed operation; Austin said recent Turkish air strikes threatened the safety of U.S. forces (Hurriyet)
Turkey Responds to Istanbul Bombing With Aerial Campaign
Turkish air strikes on Kurdish areas in northern Syria reportedly killed eleven people, including a journalist; Ankara has blamed Kurdish separatist groups for a bombing last week in Istanbul (CNN)
Turkey Blames Kurdish Militants for Bombing in Istanbul
Turkey accused Kurdish militants of planting the explosive that killed six and wounded eighty-one people in Istanbul, an allegation that both the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) and the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) deny (Reuters)
Turkish police have detained Ahlam Albashir, a Syrian woman suspected of being linked to Kurdish militants, who confessed to the bombing (AP)
At least fifty others were also arrested in several raids that have been carried out since the attack (NPR)
In response, the Turkish government announced plans to launch further cross-border attacks into northern Syria after operations targeting the PKK in Iraq are completed (Reuters)
Turkey has also accused the U.S. of complicity in the attack due to their long-held military partnership with Kurdish forces in Syria (NYT)
Sweden Agrees to Support Turkish Counterterrorism Efforts
Sweden’s Prime Minister announced the country’s intention to work with Turkey to counter its ‘terrorist’ threats to secure Turkey’s approval for Sweden’s admission to NATO (ABC News)
Meanwhile, United Nations experts called for the release of Sebnem Korur Financi, the head of Turkey’s medical association who was arrested after calling for an investigation into the army’s alleged use of chemical weapons (Reuters)
Turkey Denies Allegations of Chemical Weapons Usage in Northern Iraq
The Turkish defense ministry and top government officials responded to claims that the Turkish Armed Forces used chemical weapons in operations targeting Kurdish militants in Iraq, calling the allegations “baseless and untrue” (Reuters)
Eleven journalists associated with pro-Kurdish media have since been arrested under a new media law that mandates prison terms for spreading “disinformation” (AP)
An additional arrest included the head of Turkey’s medical association, Sebnem Korur Fincancui, who called for an investigation into the chemical weapons allegations (BBC)
Turkey Announces Successful Operations Targeting Kurdish Forces in Syria, Iraq
Turkish Defense Minister Hulusi Akar said his government “neutralized” thirty members of the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) in cross-border airstrikes in northern Syria and Iraq (Reuters)
Meanwhile, Turkish and Swedish officials met to discuss Turkey’s demands for the extradition of Kurdish rebels and other groups they consider terrorists; this comes after Turkey threatened to block Sweden’s and Finland’s NATO membership for allegedly ignoring its security concerns (AP)
Kurdish Militants Attack Turkish Police, Kill One Officer and Themselves
Two female Kurdish militants affiliated with the Kurdistan Workers’ Party opened fire on police in Mersin, killing one officer, before detonating suicide bombs (AP)
Nine Killed in Iraqi Kurdistan by Suspected Turkish Artillery
Nine civilians in Iraqi Kurdistan, including two children, were killed by artillery shells local officials attributed to Turkey; Turkey launched an offensive in northern Iraq targeting the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) in April (Washington Post)
Turkey Lifts Veto, Allowing Finland and Sweden to Join NATO
Turkey lifted its veto on NATO membership for Finland and Sweden following a memorandum ensuring the two countries would sign an extradition agreement and amend domestic legislation to support Turkish action against designated Kurdish terrorist organizations; this move constitutes the greatest expansion of NATO in decades amid the Russian invasion of Ukraine (New York Times)
Turkey Detains Twenty Kurdish Journalists
Twenty journalists from the Kurdish-majority city of Diyarbakir, Turkey have spent over a week in police custody for reasons unknown, with lawyers prevented from accessing case documents; press freedom activists have suggested the detentions are connected to Turkey’s planned incursion in northern Syria (Al Monitor)
Turkey Summons Iraqi Envoy After Baghdad Condemns Turkish Strike
The Turkish foreign ministry summoned Iraq’s envoy in Ankara following an accusation that Turkey violated Iraqi sovereignty during a recent military operation against Kurdish militants in northern Iraq (Reuters)
Turkey Announces New Offensive Against Kurdish Militants in Iraq
Turkey launched new air and ground attacks against Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) compounds in northern Iraq near the Turkish border (Agence France-Presse)
Turkey Attacks Kurds in Iraq and Syria
Turkish warplanes attacked suspected Kurdish militant positions in Syria and Iraq, killing at least four (ABC)
Turkey Carries Out Air Strikes on PKK in Iraq
Turkish forces carried out an air attack after fighters belonging to the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) reportedly killed at least three Turkish soldiers in northern Iraq, Turkey’s defense ministry said (Al Jazeera)