Turkish warplanes bomb Duhok’s Gara Mountain: official
ERBIL, Kurdistan Region — Turkish warplanes on Saturday bombed areas on Duhok province’s Gara Mountain, said an official, causing fear among villagers a few kilometers away.
“Two areas were bombed near the villages of Spindar and Grgash,” Sami Barwari, the head of Deraluk town, confirmed to Rudaw’s Nasir Ali on Saturday.
No casualties were reported by Kurdish authorities or locals from the surrounding villages.
Turkey’s Ministry of Defense claimed on Saturday to have killed four members of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) in the same area.
“Every time there is a warplane, the people get scared. It’s a very awful feeling,” Sherwan Sargali, a local from Grgash village, told Rudaw English on Saturday. “What should we do? Should we leave our village and head to a park in Duhok and become refugees?”
Sargali said that around 5:00 pm Turkish warplanes dropped two bombs in an area only 3-4 kilometers away from Spindar village and 6-7 kilometer away from Grgash village. Around 70 to 80 families live in Grgash village, according to the villager.
Bombing in the area roughly two months ago hit so close to the village, fire neared houses and areas where herd animals graze, Sargali told Rudaw English, pressing locals to put out fires themselves or call up the fire service.
Gara Mountain used to be a popular attraction among tourists and locals looking for a dense snowy winter, as well as offering a fragment of history from the Saddam Hussein era, as his now-ruined palace sitting at the top of the mountain.
Turkey launched its current offensive in the Kurdistan Region mid-June, with the stated aim of removing PKK fighters from the border areas. Operations have focused on areas in Duhok province’s Zakho region where villagers living in the mountains have borne the brunt of Turkey's bombing. Several civilians have been killed in the strikes this year.
“Two areas were bombed near the villages of Spindar and Grgash,” Sami Barwari, the head of Deraluk town, confirmed to Rudaw’s Nasir Ali on Saturday.
No casualties were reported by Kurdish authorities or locals from the surrounding villages.
Turkey’s Ministry of Defense claimed on Saturday to have killed four members of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) in the same area.
“Every time there is a warplane, the people get scared. It’s a very awful feeling,” Sherwan Sargali, a local from Grgash village, told Rudaw English on Saturday. “What should we do? Should we leave our village and head to a park in Duhok and become refugees?”
Sargali said that around 5:00 pm Turkish warplanes dropped two bombs in an area only 3-4 kilometers away from Spindar village and 6-7 kilometer away from Grgash village. Around 70 to 80 families live in Grgash village, according to the villager.
Bombing in the area roughly two months ago hit so close to the village, fire neared houses and areas where herd animals graze, Sargali told Rudaw English, pressing locals to put out fires themselves or call up the fire service.
Gara Mountain used to be a popular attraction among tourists and locals looking for a dense snowy winter, as well as offering a fragment of history from the Saddam Hussein era, as his now-ruined palace sitting at the top of the mountain.
Turkey launched its current offensive in the Kurdistan Region mid-June, with the stated aim of removing PKK fighters from the border areas. Operations have focused on areas in Duhok province’s Zakho region where villagers living in the mountains have borne the brunt of Turkey's bombing. Several civilians have been killed in the strikes this year.