Turkish airstrikes fuel fires in northern areas of Kurdistan Region
ERBIL, Kurdistan Region — Turkish warplanes repeatedly bombed a village in the Iraqi Kurdistan Region near Amedi on Tuesday, causing fires as they targeted suspected Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) positions.
Nine airstrikes fell on Pirozana, a village in the Amedi district of the Duhok Province, starting at 10:30 a.m., according to mukhtar Isaa Hussein.
"We are urging Turkey to stop its airstrikes. We are farmers and poor people who only want to live our lives," Hussein told Rudaw, adding that the PKK should likewise “avoid our region.”
The airstrikes did not cause any casualties, but did result in material damage, according to Hussein: "Orchards and groves of our villagers caught fire."
Footage captured in a remote area near Amedi, Duhok Province, Iraqi Kurdistan Region, shows the aftermath of Turkish airstrikes on July 30, 2019. Video: Rudaw
The mayor of Amedi Ismael Mustafa told Rudaw that firefighters had not been able to put out the fires because of ongoing strikes as of mid-afternoon.
However, a resident who wanted to remain anonymous for his safety said the Turkish airstrike targeted a PKK vehicle 200 meters from the village, killing two people. Rudaw could not independently confirm his claim. Mukhtar Hussein called on both Turkey and the PKK to take their fight elsewhere.
Pirozana is just two kilometers south of Amedi. The area is close to the Iraq-Turkey border. Thousands of tourists visit the hilltop city of Amedi each year to enjoy its nature, waters and scenic views.
Turkey has repeatedly conducted airstrikes against alleged PKK targets near Amedi as part of its Operation Claw targeting the group, which began in May. The second phase of the operation intensified this month.
Amedi authorities told Rudaw earlier this month that six civilians have been killed and 11 injured in 2019 by Turkish airstrikes.
Around 360 villages — mostly around Amedi — have been evacuated because of the fighting, according to Mayor Mustafa.
Both authorities from the Kurdistan Regional Government in Erbil and Iraqi federal government in Baghdad have repeatedly called on groups to refrain from using their territory to take up arms against other countries. The PKK long has based itself in the Qandil mountains in the Kurdistan Region on the borders of Turkey and Iran.
The PKK’s fight against the Turkish state has lasted four decades. It has experienced brief periods of ceasefire, but was reignited after a peace process stalled in 2015.
Some 4,472 people have been killed since the peace process fell apart, according to figures from the International Crisis Group updated in July of this year.