Turkey’s Foreign Ministry announced that Ankara grieves for the victims of this attack, stressing that it is taking care to avoid civilian casualties in the counter-terrorist operations it is conducting against the Kurdistan Workers’ Party.
Turkey tonight denied reports by Iraqi state media that launched an attack at a mountain recreation park in Dohuk Province, killing eight tourists and injuring 23 others.
According to AFP, the dead are nine.
Ankara, for its part, spoke of “terrorist attack”.
“Heavy artillery shelling” hit a resort in Zaho, a town on the border between Turkey and Iraqi Kurdistan, according to state-run Iraqi television. The Kurdistan Ministry of Health reported that two children were among the victims – one of them was just 1 year old. All victims died before reaching a hospital.
“We were going towards the mountainside, shelling. We go to the waterfall, shelling. We’re going this way, shelling,” said Mustafa Alaa, 24, who was at the amusement park with a friend. “We pulled the fence that was around the waterfall. We looked inside, I saw children lying on the ground… It’s a picture I’ve never seen before in my life,” he added.
Turkey’s Foreign Ministry announced that Ankara grieves for the victims of this attack, stressing that Turkey ensures that losses are avoided of civilians or damage to historical or cultural sites, in its counter-terrorist operations against the Kurdistan Workers’ Party and other organizations.
“Turkey is ready to do whatever it takes to reveal the truth,” the ministry added in its statement, arguing that Turkish military operations obeyed international law.
“We call on the Iraqi government not to make comments influenced by the propaganda of the heinous terrorist organization and to work together to expose the perpetrators of this heinous act,” he added, referring to the PKK.
Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kazimi took an unusually harsh tone towards Turkey in a statement condemning Ankara’s “blatant violation of his country’s national sovereignty”.
Iraqi President Barham Saleh also condemned the “Turkish bombing” as a “threat to national security”.
The victims at the amusement park were, in their majority, “Arabs, Iraqi tourists, from central and southern Iraq,” said Mushir Bashir, the governor of Zaho district. “Turkey hit the village twice today,” he added.
Turkey frequently launches airstrikes in northern Iraq and has sent special forces to support its operations as part of its campaign in Iraq and Syria against PKK fighters and the YPG, the Syrian Kurdish militia.
The UN special envoy to Iraq condemned today’s attack and called for an investigation.
The State Department said it was monitoring the situation but declined to comment in detail on media reports of the attack. During a regular press briefing, US State Department spokesman Ned Price reiterated the firm US position that military action in Iraq should respect the country’s sovereignty and territorial integrity and stressed that “it is important to ensure that civilians will are protected”.
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