The Iraqi Kurds' waning love affair with Turkey
Relations between the Turkish government and the Kurdistan Regional Government look likely to deteriorate as Turkey escalates its war against the Kurdistan Workers Party.
On Aug. 1, Turkish air force jets rained bombs on what the Turkish government insisted was a safe house for rebels with the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) in the Qandil Mountain village of Zargala, near the border separating Iraqi Kurdistan from Iran. At least nine people, all civilians, perished in the strike.
The deaths provoked a barrage of protests among Kurds worldwide. On Twitter, the hashtag #BabyKillerErdogan, a reference to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, conveyed their indignation.
Iraqi Kurdistan Region President Massoud Barzani joined in the chorus of outrage. “We condemn this bombardment that led to the martyrdom of people from the Kurdistan Region and call on Turkey not to bombard civilians again,” Barzani said in a statement.
In August 2011, a family of seven was blown to bits in a Turkish airstrike, again in Qandil. Then, too, Barzani called on Ankara not to bombard civilians again.
