Erdogan also underlined what he considered to be Demirtas’ failure to label the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) a “terrorist group” – unlike the United States and the European Union, who recognize it as such.
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In an interview with Reuters, Selahattin Demirtas, leader of Turkey’s pro-Kurdish Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP), said the main aim of the campaign was not to combat Islamist jihadists but to prevent Kurds from unifying areas they control in Syria.
“We support the government of Turkey’s efforts to combat terrorism, even as we are mindful of the need to avoid tensions between those who are committed to and engaged in the fight against ISIL (ISIS)”, Seal said in an email.
“Turkey’s operations do not aim at taking measures against Islamic State”. PKK targets inside Turkey’s borders have also been hit.
The process aimed to end a decades-old conflict with the PKK, which has claimed the lives of more than 40,000 people.
Five people died Thursday in new attacks on the Turkish security forces blamed on Kurdish militants, as Ankara stepped up its controversial campaign against the separatist rebels.
Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu has suggested the recent string of attacks by Daesh and the PKK terrorist organizations are linked, saying it was “as if someone was pushing the pawns forward one by one”.
In response, Turkey’s air force has carried out raids against PKK bases in southern Turkey and northern Iraq. The strikes against the PKK have been much heavier than those against ISIS so far, leading Kurdish politicians to accuse the government of using the ISIS operation as cover.
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Demirtas’ big brother, Nurettin Demirtas, “had been raised in the mountains”, said the president, adding “Demirtas would [also] go to the mountains [to join him] if he gets the chance”. The PKK said the air strikes rendered the peace process meaningless, but had stopped short of formally pulling out.
