Mules are known for their tenacity and stamina. Now they have also become "accessories to crime" targeted by the Turkish army. For hundreds of years for the people living in the Turkey-Iraq border’s hard climate and rough terrain, mules have been the primary mode of moving cargo on the ancient trade routes. With the demarcation of the Turkey-Iraq border in 1926, this traditional cross-border trade was re-branded as cross-border smuggling and the mules were made accessories to the crime of smuggling.

Decadeslong socio-economic dynamics clashed with political dynamics recently in disturbing events on the Turkey-Iraq border. Kurdish-origin villagers living there said that near the village of Ortasu, not far from Uludere (also known as Roboski), Turkish soldiers killed eight mules with rifle fire March 23. At Uludere and nearby villages, people demonstrated for three days, but soldiers, armed with a court order, continued to shoot the mules. We must remember here that Uludere is a sensitive area where on Dec. 28, 2011, the Turkish air force mistakenly bombed and killed 34 smugglers misidentified as militants with the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK).

According to security sources who serve in the region and who spoke to Al-Monitor on condition of anonymity, since the end of February there has been significant growth in smuggling on the Turkey-Iraq border. These sources emphasize that smuggling is no longer an individual activity. It has become massive and organized, using mule trains of 200 to 300. To keep psychological pressure on security forces serving the area, the PKK makes good use of smuggling operations and constantly provokes villagers against soldiers. The same sources said that since the 2011 Uludere bombing, people living along the border have perceived smuggling as their prerogative. Each household maintains eight to 10 mules. Cigarette smuggling is the most lucrative, with at least one Turkish lira ($0.35) profit per package. As a mule can carry up to 3,000 cigarette packs in one run, each can earn at least 3,000 lira ($1,100) for its owner. With 10 mules, a smuggler can make up to 30,000 lira ($11,000). There are also allegations that guns are sometimes smuggled to terrorists strapped under bellies of mules.

The Turkish security sources point to visibly improved living conditions of the villagers along the border as evidence of their allegations. They said that in front of every village tenement there are two or three cars, at least one a luxury model. According to the sources, mules have been shot when clashes broke out after smugglers reacted to the soldiers' order to halt by opening fire. Soldiers also report that on April 9, about 1,000 villagers provoked by PKK militants marched to the border. Despite warnings that they were entering a restricted military zone, they did not disperse and 15 soldiers were wounded by the stones they threw.