Turkey killing journalists in Sulaimani a ‘war crime,’ says pro-Kurdish MP

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - A pro-Kurdish member of Turkey’s parliament on Monday slammed the killing of two journalists in a suspected Turkish drone strike in Kurdistan Region’s Sulaimani province, saying that the attack constitutes a war crime.

“I want to commemorate Hero Bahaddin and Gulistan Tara, who lost their lives as a result of Turkey's drone strike, a few days ago in Sulaimani,” Gulistan Kilic Kocyigit, deputy head of the pro-Kurdish Peoples' Equality and Democracy Party (DEM Party) parliamentary bloc, said during a Monday speech inside parliament.

“We ask: What is the justification for these drone strikes? What is the purpose of targeting civilian residential areas and civilian vehicles from thousands of kilometers away? What is Turkey trying to achieve with these attacks?” she added.

Gulistan Tara and Hero Bahadin from Sterk TV were killed in a suspected Turkish drone strike near Said Sadiq, east of Sulaimani, in the Kurdistan Region on Friday. 

The attack has drawn criticism from Iraqi and Kurdish politicians, civil rights activists, and press-freedom advocates.

Kocyigit said that Turkey “has committed war crimes many times in Sulaimani by targeting civilian residential areas, civilian vehicles, and killing the people there, including free-press workers. Let us state this clearly and explicitly.”

Kocyigit also accused the Turkish government of hypocrisy, drawing a comparison between the death of Tara and Bahadin, with an attack by the Israeli army on reporters of Turkish State Television (TRT) in the Gaza Strip in April.

“But how do we explain the fact that those who denounce Israel’s actions as a crime and criticize Israel go on to do the same thing in Southern Kurdistan [the Kurdistan Region], in Sulaimani, and kill two journalists? Isn’t this a hypocritical policy?” she said, calling for the Turkish government to be held accountable.

The attack also has drawn criticism from Iraqi and Kurdish politicians. The Iraqi parliament’s foreign affairs committee condemned the attack in a statement on Friday.

“We affirm that the targeting is an unjustified crime, a blatant violation of Iraq's sovereignty, and a breach of international laws and treaties, as it affects civilians,” read the committee’s statement. “Journalists worldwide do not pose a threat to any party and all sides must respect press freedom.”

The committee also condemned the “repeated attacks on Iraqi territory” and called on the federal government to take legal action and hold the perpetrators to account.

Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) Deputy Prime Minister Qubad Talabani said in a post on Friday on Facebook: “The victims of the drone attack near Said Sadiq district were two female journalists, not members of an armed force that poses a threat to the security and stability of a country or region.” 

Media affiliated with the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) have blamed Turkey for the attack, saying six people were injured, alongside the two journalists who were killed.

The Turkish defense ministry did not comment on the strike. Turkey frequently carries out air and drone strikes on alleged PKK positions in the Kurdistan Region.