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Iraq could use force if Kurdish referendum leads to violence

September 16, 2017 By administrator

Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi speaking during an interview with the Associated Press. Photo: AP videopm,force,kurdistan

By Associated Press,

BAGHDAD, Iraq – Iraq is prepared to intervene militarily if the Kurdish region’s planned independence referendum results in violence, Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi told The Associated Press in an exclusive interview Saturday.

If the Iraqi population is “threatened by the use of force outside the law, then we will intervene militarily,” he said.

Iraq’s Kurdish region plans to hold the referendum on support for independence from Iraq on Sept. 25 in three governorates that make up their autonomous region, and in disputed areas controlled by Kurdish forces but which are claimed by Baghdad.

“If you challenge the constitution and if you challenge the borders of Iraq and the borders of the region, this is a public invitation to the countries in the region to violate Iraqi borders as well, which is a very dangerous escalation,” al-Abadi said.

The leaders of Iraq’s Kurdish region have said they hope the referendum will push Baghdad to come to the negotiating table and create a path for independence. However, al-Abadi said such negotiations would likely be complicated by the referendum vote.

“It will make it harder and more difficult,” he said, but added: “I will never close the door to negotiations. Negotiations are always possible.”

Iraq’s Kurds have come under increasing pressure to call off the vote from regional powers and the United States, a key ally, as well as Baghdad.

In a statement released late Friday night the White House called for the Kurdish region to call off the referendum “and enter into serious and sustained dialogue with Baghdad.”

“Holding the referendum in disputed areas is particularly provocative and destabilizing,” the statement read.

Tensions between Irbil and Baghdad have flared in the lead-up to the Sept. 25 vote.

Masoud Barzani, the president of Iraq’s autonomous Kurdish region, has repeatedly threatened violence if Iraqi military or Shiite militias attempt to move into disputed territories that are now under the control of Kurdish fighters known as Peshmerga, specifically the oil-rich city of Kirkuk.

“It’s chaotic there,” Muhammad Mahdi al-Bayati, a senior leader of Iraq’s mostly Shiite fighters known as the popular mobilization forces, said earlier this week, describing Kirkuk in the lead up to the vote.

Al-Bayati’s forces – sanctioned by Baghdad, but many with close ties to Iran – are deployed around Kirkuk as well as other disputed territories in Iraq’s north.

“Everyone is under pressure,” he said, explaining that he feared a rogue group of fighters could trigger larger clashes. “Anything could be the spark that burns it all down.”

Al-Abadi said he is focused on legal responses to the Kurdish referendum on independence. Earlier this week Iraq’s parliament rejected the referendum in a vote boycotted by Kurdish lawmakers.

Iraq’s Kurds have long held a dream of statehood. Brutally oppressed under Saddam Hussein, whose military in the 1980s killed at least 50,000 of them, many with chemical weapons, Iraq’s Kurds established a regional government in 1992 after the U.S. enforced a no-fly zone across the north following the Gulf War.

After the 2003 U.S.-led invasion ousted Saddam, the region secured constitutional recognition of its autonomy, but remained part of the Iraqi state.

When asked if he would ever accept an independent Kurdistan, Al-Abadi said: “It’s not up to me, this is a constitutional” matter.

“If (Iraq’s Kurds) want to go along that road, they should work toward amending the constitution,” al-Abadi said. “In that case we have to go all the way through parliament and a referendum to the whole Iraqi people.

“For them to call for only the Kurds to vote, I think this is a hostile move toward the whole of the Iraqi population,” he said.

Filed Under: Articles Tagged With: force, Iraq, Kurdistan, PM

Putin signs deal allowing air forces to stay in Syria for 49 years

July 28, 2017 By administrator

Russia’s president signs a law enabling the country’s air forces to remain in Syria for 49 years as part of a protocol to a 2015 agreement with the Damascus government.

The protocol was signed by Moscow and Damascus in January 2017, regulating issues related to the Air Forces’ deployment to the Syrian territory.

It was adopted by the Russian State Duma, the Lower House of the Russian Parliament, on July 14, and approved by the Senate five days later.

Vladimir Putin signed it on Thursday, RT cited a Kremlin statement as saying.

Enshrined in the protocol is an option enabling automatic extension of the arrangement for another 25 years.

The protocol also features Damascus’ agreement to provide the Russian air force with free land in its northwestern Latakia Province.

Russia has been using the Khmeimim Air Base there to carry out anti-terror operations since September 2015.

The Russian military has also been offering advisory support to Syria, helping the Arab nation make numerous gains in its battles on terrorists.

In March 2016, Moscow withdrew many of its forces from Syria, with Putin saying the goals of the anti-terrorist mission there had been “generally accomplished.”

Russia, however, said it would keep a military presence at the port of Tartus and at the Khmeimim airbase to monitor the situation and the implementation of truce deals.

Filed Under: Articles Tagged With: force, Russia, Syria

Report: US deploys force in Manbij as ‘visible sign of deterrence’ – Pentagon

March 6, 2017 By administrator

A small number of US troops were sent to the northern Syrian town of Manbij to deter conflict between the US-backed Kurdish forces and Turkey-backed rebels, the Pentagon has confirmed. Syrian troops have also moved into the area to serve as a buffer.

US troops were first spotted in Manbij on Saturday, following the reports of a deal between the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces and the Syrian government to hand over some 20 villages in a zone between Manbij and Al-Bab, recently taken by Turkish-backed forces.

“They are certainly aware of where we are, and we are aware of where they are. There is no intention between the two of there being any conflict against any party other than ISIS [Islamic State],” Pentagon spokesman Captain Jeff Davis told reporters, referring to the US and Syrian forces.

The US-backed SDF is mostly comprised of Kurdish militia, considered terrorists by Turkey. Washington has cultivated the SDF as a proxy force on the ground against Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS/ISIL) independent of the Syrian army, which is supported by Russia and Iran.

https://youtu.be/WQs-7khZ9nc

US troops were sent to Manbij after “the increase in Turkish treats to occupy the city,” Sharfan Darwish, spokesman for the Manbij Military Council, told Reuters. Turkish-backed forces have clashed with SDF troops west of Manbij over the weekend and even on Monday, Darwish confirmed.

Last week, the US-backed group struck a deal with Russia to turn over up to 20 villages west of Manbij to the Syrian army, creating a buffer zone between the Kurdish-dominated militia and the Turks. While implementation of the deal has been delayed, five villages were handed over on Monday, Darwish said.

SDF forces liberated Manbij from IS in August 2016, just days before Ankara announced “Operation Euphrates Shield.” Turkish-backed Syrian rebels, along with Turkish armor and artillery, have since pushed IS back and captured the key stronghold of Al-Bab, only to see further advance checked by Syrian government troops that linked up with the SDF south of the city.

US presence in the area was intended to keep all groups focused on fighting IS, the Pentagon said on Monday.

Filed Under: Articles Tagged With: deploys, force, manbij, Syria, U.S

Iraqi parliament rejects ‘occupying’ Turkish military mandate in N.Iraq

October 5, 2016 By administrator

occupation-of-n-iraqA Turkish military base in Bashiqa near the Iraqi city of Mosul. Photo: Rudaw

Baghdad, Iraq—The Iraqi parliament, in a majority vote, has rejected an extension of the mandate of Turkish troops in Iraq and called for a review of relations with Turkey.

The lawmakers also asked for the government of Iraq to file a complaint against Turkey at the United Nations and the UN Security Council. They want the government to formally describe Turkish troops as an “occupying” force.

In addition, the parliament demanded the Turkish ambassador be summoned to receive a letter critical of Turkey’s presence in Iraq.

In Iraq’s northern Nineveh Province, Turkey deployed military advisors to train Kurdish Peshmerga forces and the Sunni Hashd al-Watani militia to fight ISIS in that province last year. Baghdad has been demanding Turkish forces withdraw since last December when Turkey sent additional military forces to protect its base in Bashiqa, near Mosul, from ISIS attacks, without the explicit authorization of the Iraqi government.

On Saturday, the Turkish parliament voted to extend the army’s military mandates in both Iraq and Syria, where Turkish forces are trying to establish a 5,000 square kilometre safe zone along its border.

Filed Under: News Tagged With: force, Iraq, occupying, reject, Turkish

Edition in Yerevan Armenian Book “Islamized Armenians force” of the Turkish historian Taner Akçam

August 24, 2016 By administrator

Islamaix=zed ArmenianA Yerevan recently published book in Armenian Turkish historian Taner Akçam on Islamized Armenians force. Under the title “Islamized Armenians force” Akçam’s book consists of three parts. The first refers to the denial of the Armenian Genocide by Turkey and the maneuvers of the Turkish State to not open these dark pages of history.

The second part discusses the denial of Turkey and censorship of the writings and testimonies of Armenian Sarkis Torossian, an officer in the Ottoman Army. Finally, the third section discusses the Islamization force Armenians in the years 1915 to 1918. Akçam details this page of history relatively unknown in the Armenian genocide of the process. The book was translated from Turkish into Armenian by Meline Anoumian under the direction of editor Haïgazoun Alvratsyan. The book is published by the Centre for analysis and study of Armenians of Western Armenia.

Krikor Amirzayan

Filed Under: Articles, Books, Genocide Tagged With: Armenians, Commander resigns as divisions among Syrian rebel forces widen, force, Islamized

HRW: Armenian police used excessive force against protesters

August 2, 2016 By administrator

police-forceArmenian police used excessive force against peaceful protesters on July 29, 2016 and assaulted journalists reporting on the demonstrations, Human Rights Watch said.

Police used stun grenades, which wounded dozens of demonstrators and some journalists, some severely. The police also beat journalists and protesters and detained dozens of people.

Armenian authorities have opened an investigation into police actions on July 29.

“Armenia’s investigation of the police assaults on demonstrators on July 29 should be swift and thorough,” said Giorgi Gogia, South Caucasus director at Human Rights Watch. “While the police have an obligation to maintain public order, they do not have carte blanche to use violence against people gathered to peacefully express their views.”

Protests have been ongoing in Armenia since July 17, when armed men from a radical opposition group seized a police station in Yerevan’s Erebuni district, killing one policeman and taking several hostages, demanding political concessions from the government. Before the gunmen surrendered on July 31, public support for them grew into a wide protest movement in Yerevan.

While police and protesters have scuffled several times, on the night of July 29 police used excessive and disproportionate force to disperse a peaceful crowd. Other protests took place without incident or police interference.

Human Rights Watch spoke with victims and witnesses of the violence. Several said that at about 11 p.m., police rapidly fired numerous rocket-projected stun grenades and threw hand-held stun grenades into the peaceful crowds near the police station in the Erebuni district.

Journalists and protesters said that although police told protest leaders that the crowd had to disperse, the police did not make any meaningful effort to warn the crowds to disperse or about their plans to use force. Police did not use other means of crowd control before resorting to stun grenades.

Interviewees told Human Rights Watch that the crowd was not attempting to cross the cordon when police started launching the stun grenades. Video footage of the events reviewed by Human Rights Watch supports the witness accounts.

While police could legitimately seek to prevent protesters from getting too close to the police station, they were still bound to uphold human rights and respect standards on the use of force, Human Rights Watch said.

“Police should not interfere with the legitimate work of journalists, let alone attack and punish them for doing their jobs,” Gogia said.

Also read: President Sargsyan apologizes to journalists over July 29 violence

Related links:

HRW. Armenia: Excessive Police Force at Protest
Ria.ru: HRW считает, что полиция обошлась слишком жестко с демонстрантами в Ереване

Filed Under: Articles Tagged With: armenian police, axcessve, force, hrw

Armenia needs strong and mature political forces – Piotr Świtalski

May 11, 2016 By administrator

f573311a19ca79_573311a19cab3.thumbArmenia needs strong and mature political forces now, Head of the Delegation of the European Union to Armenia Piotr Antoni Świtalski stated at a debate on European politics and Armenian parties on the eve of the 40th anniversary of the European People’s Party (EPP).

According to him, Armenia has seen a major change, namely, a transition to parliamentary government, with political parties playing a more serious role.

Any forecasts about further developments are difficult to make. Mr Świtalski believes that it could be a factor in the formation of political systems of many countries.

Armenia’s new Constitution opened a new chapter in Armenia’s politics.

The transition to parliamentary government creates serious preconditions for political parties.

Mr Świtalski participated in numerous debates on the government systems in the regional countries. In Georgia, young people were critical of political parties and indignant. Armenia has reached a stage when it needs strong, mature and well-organized political parties. Mr Świtalski’s wish is that Armenia develop effective party-forming models ad offer ample opportunities to citizens. Political parties imply a choice.

Filed Under: Articles Tagged With: Armenia, force, mature, need, political

Karabakh Update: Baku confirms death of Special Forces Lieutenant Colonel

April 11, 2016 By administrator

209993Baku confirmed the death of a Lieutenant Colonel from the Azeri Special Forces, Haqqin.az reports.

Baku’s attempts to conceal the number of fighters killed in the course of clashes between Karabakh and Azerbaijan since April 2 proved ineffective.

According to Azerbaijani media outlets, the body of Murad Telman oğlu Mirzayev, who was killed in recent clashes with Karabakh, will be transported to Baku by helicopter.

Mirzayev was reportedly killed “in a special combat mission.”

The parties to the Karabakh conflict agreed on a bilateral ceasefire along the contact line which came into force at midday, April 5.

Prior to that, on the night of April 1-2, Azerbaijani armed forces initiated overt offensive operations in the southern, southeastern and northeastern directions of the line of contact with Nagorno Karabakh.

As of April 5, the Azerbaijani side has lost 26 tanks and 4 infantry fighting vehicles, as well as 1 BM-21 Grad multiple rocket launcher, 1 engineering vehicle, 2 military helicopters and 14 unmanned aerial vehicles. The Azerbaijani side has admitted the loss of 31 fighters, 1 helicopter and 1 unmanned drone, whereas the Armenian side’s photo and video materials show dozens of killed Azerbaijani troops, 1 helicopter and 3 UAVs. Opposition media outlets, however, reported on the death of 93 Azerbaijani soldiers, stating that 33 more have been wounded. According to Karabakh authorities, 300 Azerbaijani soldiers were killed in clashes.

14 Karabakh tanks have been neutralized since April 2.

Read also:93 Azerbaijani soldiers killed in clashes with Karabakh

Related links:

http://haqqin.az/news/67762

Filed Under: Articles Tagged With: Baku, Death, force, Karabakh, lieutenant, special

Iraq denies Turkish forces in north clashed with ISIL ’recently’ “Turkey Fabrication”

January 9, 2016 By administrator

237690

A member of the Kurdish Peshmerga forces stands guard at a security point on Bashiqa mountain, overlooking ISIL held territories of Mosul, in this March 2015 photo. (Photo: Reuters)

Iraq‘s joint operations command denied on Saturday that Turkish forces based in northern Iraq had been attacked by the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) or had clashed with the militants, refuting a statement by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.

“The joint operations command denies there was a terrorist attack on the position of Turkish forces in Bashiqa by the terrorist Daesh (ISIL) recently,” said a news flash on state television, referring to a military base near Mosul.

“The joint operations command denies what was relayed in some media outlets from the Turkish president about clashing between the Turkish forces inside Iraqi territory and the terrorist Daesh whether in Bashiqa or any other areas,” another flash said.

Erdoğan said on Friday that an attack by ISIL on the military base where Turkish troops are training an Iraqi Sunni militia showed Turkey’s decision to deploy troops there was justified.

Filed Under: Articles Tagged With: denies, force, Iraq, ISIL, Turkish

Iraq calls on NATO to force withdrawal of Turkish forces

December 8, 2015 By administrator

Haider al-Abadi. Photo: AFP.

Haider al-Abadi. Photo: AFP.

By Rudaw,

ERBIL, Kurdistan – NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg vowed Tuesday  to preserve the integrity and sovereignty of Iraq, after Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi called on the organization to use its authority to force a withdrawal of Turkish forces from Iraq.

“In a phone call with Jens Stoltenberg, Haider al-Abadi, prime minister of Iraq, said that Turkey deployed its troops in Iraq without Baghdad’s consent and that we refuse the present of Turkish forces from the land of Iraq,” Abadi’s office said in an announcement Tuesday.

“Before the ending of a 48 hour ultimatum to withdraw forces, Iraq will through diplomatic channels call on Turkey to abide by Baghdad’s decree to withdraw its forces immediately, because they have explicitly violated the sovereignty of Iraq,” Abadi had said.

He called on NATO to “use its authority against Turkey to withdraw its troops from Iraq.”

Stoltenberg assured Abadi that the issue would be discussed inside NATO, and stressed that the issue can only be resolved through diplomatic negotiations,

On Saturday, Turkey revealed it had been training Peshmerga forces in four provinces in Iraq, after Baghdad disclosed that fresh forces had been sent into Iraq without consultations with the central government.

A new force of some 150 trainers was relieving the previous team, it said.

On Sunday, Baghdad gave Turkey 48 hours to withdraw the forces.

Filed Under: Articles Tagged With: force, Iraq, NATO, Turkey, withdrawal

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