Turkey to decide on Lebanon mission amid protests

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http://www.khaleejtimes.ae/DisplayArticleNew.asp?xfile=data/middleeast/2006/September/middleeast_September114.xml§ion=middleeast

ANKARA - Turkey’s parliament was expected later on Tuesday to approve the deployment of hundreds of troops to join a UN peacekeeping force in Lebanon, but thousands of protesters took to the streets to oppose the mission.

Many in the Muslim but secular country are concerned the UN force, due to enforce an Israel-Hezbollah truce, would mainly serve Israeli and US interests and that troops may have to fire at fellow Muslims. The left was also vehemently opposed.

‘We will not become Israeli soldiers’ and ‘Murderer USA get out of the Middle East’ chanted leftists protesting in a street near parliament. Several demonstrators were detained by police. snip

Opposition parties accused the government of being a US and Israeli stooge and said Ankara should concentrate on crushing separatist Kurdish rebels, many hiding in north Iraq.