Iraqi presidency says Turkey’s operation in Duhok is ‘threat’ to Iraq's security

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - The Iraqi presidency on Tuesday said that Turkey’s recent military operation within Iraq’s borders in the Kurdistan Region is a “violation” of the country’s sovereignty and a “threat to its national security.”

Ankara early Monday announced the Claw-Lock military operation against suspected Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) bases and hideouts in Duhok’s Metina, Zap, Avashin, and Basyan areas.

“The repetition of Turkish military operations inside the Iraqi borders in the Kurdistan Region, without coordinating with the Iraqi federal government, despite previous calls to stop them [the operations] … is unacceptable,” read a statement published by the Iraqi presidency’s under the name of a spokesperson.

Turkey has conducted numerous cross-border aerial and ground operations against the PKK over the past decade. The PKK is an armed Kurdish group fighting for greater rights for Kurds in Turkey, considered a terrorist organization by Ankara.

“Unilateral security practices in addressing outstanding security issues are unacceptable, and Iraqi sovereignty must be respected,” the statement added.

Shiite cleric Ammar al-Hakim also spoke against the incursion saying it is “unacceptable.”

Turkey has come under criticism from Baghdad, Erbil, Tehran, and the wider international community for violating Iraqi sovereignty, but Ankara continues to establish increasing numbers of bases and outposts in the mountains of Erbil and Duhok provinces.

“The decision of the official Iraqi state and its unified foreign policy is based on Iraq's continued refusal to make its land a field of conflict and an arena for the matters of others, encroaching on its sovereignty and threatening its security and internal stability,” the spokesperson added, affirming Iraq’s refusal to turn to a point where “aggression and threat” are initiated against its neighboring countries.

The Iraqi government on Monday condemned and rejected Turkey’s recent operation.

“Iraq considers this action a violation of its sovereignty and the sanctity of the country, and an act that violates international charters and laws that regulate relations between countries,” a spokesperson for the Iraqi foreign ministry Ahmed al-Sahaf said in a statement.

Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr early Tuesday warned Ankara saying Iraq “will not be silent” if it continues to violate its sovereignty.

On Tuesday afternoon, Turkey claimed 26 PKK fighters were "neutralized," while the PKK said it had killed 44 Turkish soldiers. Turkish officials use the term “neutralize” to imply surrenders, killings or capturing. 

Turkey’s defense ministry early Tuesday announced the death of a Turkish soldier during the offense.