Turkey, US agree on "action plan" to purge N.Iraq of Kurdish rebels

[NNN0LHI]

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/afp/20031002/pl_afp/iraq_turkey_us_kurds&cid=1521&ncid=1480

ANKARA (AFP) - Turkey and the United States have agreed on an "action plan", including military options, to purge northern Iraq of armed Turkish Kurd rebels, a Turkish diplomat said.

"We have agreed on an action plan," Nabi Sensoy, the deputy undersecretary of the foreign ministry, told reporters following talks between US and Turkish officials here.

About 5,000 armed members of the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), which has waged a 15-year war for self-rule in southeast Turkey, are believed to be hiding in Iraq's mountainous north since 1999 when the group announced a unilateral ceasefire and withdrew its guerrillas from Turkish territory.

The group, which is considered a terrorist organization by both Ankara and Washington, called off the truce last month.

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[ixion]

1. that's a fine hornet's nest you got us into over there, chimpy

things just keep getting better, eh? NOT! :eyes:

[ugarte]

2. $87 billion, go to the U.N., sell out the Kurds

Bush would pimp his own mother to get out of this mess.

[Tyler Durden]

3. YEAH, didn't we go in IRAQ because he gassed the Kurds?

I'm getting REAL CONFUSED here.

Hope springs eternal, but enough is enough.

[emcglynn]

4. Not a Thanksgiving Turkey

Allow Turkey to repress their population with Bush's consent. Militarize Iraq's northern border to keep the Kurds from overdosing on democracy.

[mmm]

5. Poor beguiled Kurds - when will they be loved?

So much for peace love and understanding.

[2cents]

6. OK, how much more...

...in American lives and $ does Bushco want for this one.

[damnraddem]

7. Hey, Dubya, remember how the Kurds helped fight against Saddam?

Now you're going to have them fighting against the U.S.

The idiocy of this Misadministration knows no bounds. Yes, this is a specific group, not the Kurds who helped the invasion. But this will likely unite most Kurds against the U.S.

The mess will get worse; and the U.S. troops will be among those to suffer the most for it.

Dubya thinks he's king and wants to go on crusade. Just remember what another Kurd, born in Tikrit, did to an English-speaking king: remember Saladin.

[goforit]

8. OMG!!!....these are the Kurds who have helped us.

:wtf:

[Minstrel Boy]

9. This reminds me of a song:

Good Kurds, Bad Kurds
by David Rovics

Saddam Hussein gassed the Kurdish people
Killed thousands in a single day
And twelve long years later
Uncle Sam said "you can't treat your Kurds this way
"And furthermore all Kurds are freedom fighters
"Who's resist this Iraqi tyranny
"And Uncle Sam will give them guns and maybe sometimes ammunition
"So the brave Kurds can fight until they're free"

Meanwhile in southeastern Turkey
The Turkish Army had a unique plan
We'll go in and burn down three thousand villages
Get rid of what they call Kurdistan
Well some of these pesky Kurds decided
That they would rather fight instead of die
So Uncle Sam said, "You are terrorists
"Because Turkey is our ally"

Geopolitics is confusing
In fact, it can be quite absurd
Especially if you value your freedom
You live in Turkey and you are a Kurd

Yes, when Iraqi Kurds are massacred
We say this is genocide
OK, we armed the Army through the eighties
But now we proudly take the Kurdish side
But in Turkey it's an internal matter
And for us to get involved would be wrong
So we'll sell some tanks and 'copters to Ankara
And hope these poor folks can get along

Yes, geopolitics is confusing
And you can't take the Yankees at their word
At least that's distinctly how it looks
If you live in Turkey and you're a Kurd

So when they talk about American interests
And it somehow seems that they're not yours
Going all over the world
Bombing countries and starting up wars
You'd better leave it to the experts
Go on back to your Playstations
'Cause our foreign policy only makes sense
To CEO's of multinational corporations

'Cause geopolitics is confusing
And if you feel like you're not being heard
Just imagine how much worse it could be
If you lived in Turkey and you were a Kurd

[Nottingham]

10. The Poor Kurds first Saddam Now Bush!

:bounce: they have a sign on them Kill me!

[Barrett808]

11. I always like the word "purge"

It's so much cleaner than "ethnic cleansing". Or "genocide".

[ignatius]

12. It seems more and more that the war on "terrorism" is just a way

for countries to rid themselves of perceived enemies.

On edit, I rated the story a 5, went to the top rated stories and it is NOT even in the top 19.

Just more Kurd killing is what people must be thinking, my God, when did we become so desensitized to horror in this country?

I guess I will go back to my video game now, it is so much simpler than facing reality.(That was a nod to Minstrel Boy's great song.)