German Defense Minister Slams Military Intervention Of Turkey In Mosul Battle
MEP: According to the official website of, Al-Youm Alsab, the Egyptian newspaper published in Egypt, Ursula von der Leyen the German Defense Minister criticized military intervention of the Turkish army in military operations of Mosul, in the hiding place of a (Takfiri-terrorist) Daesh Group in northern Iraq.
Ursula von der Leyen said in a statement to Channel Two television in Germany (ZDF) on Wednesday, the international coalition against ISIL holding a meeting on Tuesday in Paris without the presence of the Turks and the Iraqis reached a consensus about the need to respect the territorial integrity of other countries.
She added “Adherence to the coalition principles is mandatory.” Germany’s defense minister added: she will explicitly converse with Turkey on the issue.
Deutsche Welle wrote that Turkey is considered to be part of the international coalition against ISIL, and Iraq has repeatedly called for the withdrawal of Turkish troops; a demand to which Turkey is adamantly opposed.
A senior commander of Kurdish Peshmerga forces stressed that, the Turkish military targeted ISIS fighters’ positions in northern Iraq.
General Nur al-Din Hussein, said in a statement to the German news agency quoted from Deutsche Welle, at the request of Peshmerga forces, Turkey’s artillery and tanks attacked ISIL positions to the front line of the battle around Bashika area in the last few days.
Iraqi army and Peshmerga forces have started attacking ISIS in Mosul since the beginning of last week and advanced across a few kilometers to the eastern border of the city so far. Turkey wants to be involved in the liberation of Mosul.
Free operations of Israeli media in Mosul in one hand, and expulsion of Al Jazeera reporter on the other hand, caused Quds al-Arabi to criticize the authorities of the area and also to analyze the semi-public relations between the kurds and Israel.
Quds al-Arabi published in London: in addition to air exclusive reports from inside of Iraq showing the fight against “Islamic State” (the Zionist Takfiri ISIL) in Mosul and its surroundings from the Channel 10(Israeli media), there are also similar reports published in some Israeli newspapers.
While Kurdish authorities support Israeli journalists and let them freely work in this region, other Kurdish and foreign media are prevented from coverage.
Hamid Hadid, correspondent of Al-Jazeera channel is an example of these people. Kurdistan regional authorities asked him to leave the area as soon as possible and accused him of spreading false information and news.
Giving priority to Israeli media indicates the existence of coordination between two sides beyond any political or media issue. It’s obvious that Kurdish authorities had expressed their consent for coverage of more important political activities by Israel, long before the Mosul battle.
Quds al-Arabi also claimed: actions for strengthening the relations between Iraq and Israel after occupation of Iraq, are clearly done by local Kurdish authorities.
For example, Jalal Talabani, the former Iraqi president and the chief of Patriotic Union of Kurdistan, had met Ehud Barak, the former Israeli prime minister, on the sideline of world socialism conference in 2008.
Over the years, there have been other cases indicating secret communications between, including military, security and economic cooperations.75% of Israel’s oil needs are supplied from Iraqi Kurdistan. The formation of a “Kurdish country” is also welcomed by the Israelis. The latest example is the support of Benjamin Netanyahu, Israeli Prime Minister, for creating an independent Kurdish country.
This is not certainly limited to recent fights against Islamic State, but it also existed long time ago in sixties last century.
A “Kurdish country” consists of parts from Syria, Iraq, Iran and Israel’s ally Turkey, Said Alon Ben David, military analyst from Maariv newspaper.
After existence of ISIL, hopes for making a Kurdish country have increased. Some say after the battle in Mosul, this dream will come true. But some Kurds who trust America are concerned about their betrayal (As they did in seventies. The Kurds were equipped by the US and Shah of Iran to fight against Saddam’s regime first, but then the Americans stopped supporting them). They have also disputes over historical and geographical issues. For example “PKK” had managed to make a government in Turkey, but they didn’t succeed. Now they’re trying to make a country in Syria and Iraq, by misusing the situation of Kurds in these countries. However, Kurdistan Democratic Party, have a strong opposition from their old rival, Patriotic Union of Kurdistan, and also both of them have the oppositions from people and different parties.
Choosing a semi-public alliance with Israel may have benefits for the Kurdistan Democratic Party, including US trust and support of the Peshmarga forces in Iraq.
These supports are done with short-term goals (it means the failure of the “Islamic State”)., due to serious ideological and military differences between the Peshmerga and the military forces of PKK in the highlands of Qandil in Turkey and Syria.
If these issues haven’t enough effects, pressure of regional powers, Iran and Turkey (in addition to military forces in Iraq and Turkey) will certainly have the influence. And that’s when having relation with Israel will have serious consequences that would be hard to bear for Kurds.
