Peshmarga Ministry Condemns Iraqi Airstrike on Kurdish Town, Threatens Retaliation

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region--The Ministry of Peshmarga warned the Iraqi air force not to attack Kurdish positions or civilian population after Iraqi jets targeted the town of Tuz Khurmatu south of Kirkuk on Sunday afternoon, killing a 12-year-old girl and wounding several others.

“If the Iraqi government fails to address the issue, the Peshmarga forces will not hesitate to retaliate against the next Iraqi assault on Kurdish positions,” said Jabar Yawar, Peshmerga Ministry spokesperson.

“At 5:50 pm (local time) the Iraqi warplanes struck Tuz Khurmatu, killing one 12 year-year-old girl and wounding either others," said Sardar Ahmed Fatih, a member of Tuz Khurmatu city council.

“We urge the Iraqi government to conduct an immediate investigation into the incident and punish those behind the unprovoked attack,” said Yawar in an official statement. “In addition, we encourage the Iraqi government to publically address the attack.”

“This is the second time in less than a month that the Iraqi air force targets Kurdish Peshmarga bases and civilians,” he added.

In a similar incident last month Iraqi helicopters attacked Kurdish forces near Saadiya in northern Diyala province, killing seven Peshmerga fighters and wounding 27 others.

Officials of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) suspect that their local bureau was the “deliberate target of the airstrike,” as the rockets landed meters from their bureau.

“The fighter jets came and flew over the town for a while and then they dropped a bomb towards the PUK headquarter and then they fired another rocket at the headquarter,” said Karim Shikur, a PUK official in Tuz Khurmatu, as quoted by the PUK media.

Two houses close to the PUK office were reportedly destroyed in the attack.