Turkey has always been a safe harbor for the oppressed seeking refuge. Contrary to U.S. President Donald Trump’s scandalous accusations that Turkey is targeting Kurds in Syria, for decades it has been a sanctuary for thousands of Kurds fleeing terror and persecution in Syria and Iraq.
In an early Monday tweet which the U.S. president later deleted, Trump threatened to target Turkey's economy if Ankara hit the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) terror group, which he has deemed as the U.S.’s Kurdish allies, amid Washington's withdrawal of troops from Syria.
The best response to Trump’s baseless accusation is the thousands of Iraqi Kurds who turned to Turkey after the first chemical attack in the Middle East, the Halabja massacre, which took place on Mar. 16, 1988.
The Halabja massacre is known as the largest chemical weapons attack in history directed against a civilian-populated area, was against the Kurdish people who opposed Saddam Hussein's regime.
Turkey, disregarding any terrorist infiltrations, did its neighborly duty toward the Kurds and opened its borders to 500,000.
During the days of the Iran–Iraq War, Saddam Hussein ordered one of his commanders Ali Hassan al-Majid, who was nicknamed "Chemical Ali" and commanded Iraqi forces in northern Iraq during that period, to use chemical weapons against the Kurdish population, leading to the deaths of 5 thousand people, including babies, children, women and the elderly while leaving over 7 thousand people wounded.
Turkey once again lends a helping hand during Gulf War
Kurds fleeing the Saddam regime and dire conditions of the 1991 Gulf War once again took refuge in Turkey. Furthermore, with the increasing presence of the Daesh terror group and its devastating activities Turkey welcomed Kurds, Arabs, and Turkmens alike without discriminating between race and ethnic.
Hafez al-Assad also subjected the Kurds to various political, cultural and social pressures. Syrian Kurds were de-naturalized, considered as stateless and were deemed as “foreigners.” Close to 60,000 Kurds fled to the neighboring countries of Lebanon and Turkey, and their properties were seized by the regime.
A possible mission east of the Euphrates, which Turkey’s leadership has been suggesting for months, would follow two successful cross-border Turkish operations into Syria since 2016 – Operation Euphrates Shield and Operation Olive Branch – both meant to eradicate the presence of YPG/PKK and Daesh terrorists near Turkey’s borders.
Nearly 300,000 Syrians have returned to their country after Turkey’s two cross-border operations in northern Syria.
Turkey has no problem with Kurds and aims to fight terror groups Daesh, PKK and its Syrian affiliate PYD/YPG threatening national security, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said in a phone call with his U.S. counterpart on Monday.
Turkey hosts more than 3.5 million Syrian refugees who have fled the conflict in their homeland. Some Turks view them as an economic burden and a threat to jobs.
The PKK is listed as a terrorist organization by Turkey, the European Union and the United States. The YPG and PYD are its Syrian extensions.
