Operations Claw-Eagle and Tiger explained

Conflict:Operations Claw-Eagle and Claw-Tiger
Partof:the Kurdish–Turkish conflict and Kurdish–Iranian conflict
Place:Kurdistan Region, Iraq
Date:15 June 2020 – 5 September 2020
Combatant1: Turkey
Supported by:
(Artillery support)[1] [2]
Combatant2: Kurdistan Workers' Party
PJAK
Units1: Turkish Armed Forces

Ministry of the Interior

Units2: KCK
Commander1: Recep Tayyip Erdoğan
Hasan Küçükakyüz
Ali Özmen Hulusi Akar
Yaşar Güler
Commander2: Cemîl Bayik Murat Karayılan
Strength1:Unknown personnel
Strength2:Unknown
Casualties1:5 killed (per Turkey)[5] ----300 killed (per PKK)[6]
Casualties2:83 killed, wounded or captured (per Turkey)[7] [8] ----51 killed (per PKK)[9]
Casualties3:7 civilians killed[10]

The joint Claw-Eagle and Claw-Tiger operations (Turkish: Pençe-Kartal Operasyonu and Pençe-Kaplan Operasyonu) was a Turkish Armed Forces external operation in northern Iraq.[11] The operation took place in the Qandil Mountains, the Sinjar District, and Makhmur, against Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) targets, as part of the ongoing Kurdish–Turkish and Kurdish–Iranian conflicts. Claw-Eagle, the air campaign, began on 15 June 2020. Claw-Tiger, the ground campaign, was launched on 17 June.[12]

Background

As part of the 2013–2015 peace talks, the Kurdistan Workers' Party agreed to move most of its fighters to the mountains in Iraqi Kurdistan. The Turkish Armed Forces also established bases in Iraq which sparked regional and international condemnation. The conflict reignited once more in June 2015, accompanied by ongoing Turkish involvement in the Syrian Civil War and harassment of Kurdish parties in Turkey.[13]

Operation Claw-Eagle

Turkish Armed Forces bombed Sinjar and destroyed multiple PKK camps near Yezedi villages. According to the locals, there were fears of ethnic cleansing and genocide by the Turkish State towards Yezidi's.[14]

The Turkish government claimed that fighter jets destroyed caves in the Qandil Mountains used by the PKK.[15] The airstrikes also struck near Makhmour refugee camp,[16] [17] which hosts thousands of Turkish Kurd refugees who fled the conflict in the 1990s,[18] [19] as well as Yezidi villages in Sinjar.[14] The Turkish Ministry of National Defense released a video of the airstrikes, claiming 81 targets were destroyed.[20] [21] [22] On 25 June, a drone strike killed one[23] or two[24] PKK fighters outside a shop in Kuna Masi north of Sulaymaniyah, and injured six nearby civilians in the marketplace (two men, two women, and two children). Four of the wounded are in serious condition in Qalachwan Hospital.

Operation Claw-Tiger

On 17 June, Turkish Land Forces launched a ground operation in the Haftanin region of Iraqi Kurdistan. Units of the Hakkari Mountain and Commando Brigade and 1st Commando Brigade were airlifted across the Iraq–Turkey border.[25] [26]

Iranian cooperation

See also: Western Iran clashes (2016–present). On 16 June, the Iranian military shelled the Choman area of the Qandil Mountains,[1] an attack that is believed to have been coordinated with the simultaneous Turkish airstrikes.[2] The collaboration is said to materialize known alliances between Turkey and Iran.[27]

Domestic reactions

Iraq

The parliament of the Kurdistan region criticized the attacks[28] while Iraq demanded that Turkey stops violating the Iraqi airspace and terrorizing the population in the area.[29] [30]

In August 2020, Iraq canceled a ministerial meeting and summoned the Turkish ambassador as Iraq blamed Turkey for a drone strike that killed two high-ranking Iraqi military officers. Officials called it a "blatant Turkish drone attack" in the autonomous Kurdish region in northern Iraq.[31]

International reactions

UN-member countries

In June 2020, the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom accused Turkey that it threatened Yazidis families who attempted to return to their homes in the Sinjar. Turkey rejected the claims.[32]

International organizations

The Arab League condemned the operation based on violation of Iraq's sovereign space.[33] Turkey criticized the declaration, on the claim of PKK itself affecting Iraq's sovereignty.[34]

Protests

Protests condemning the airstrikes were held in Duhok province[35] but also in several countries in Europe.[36] [37] In London a Kurdish protester forced a car transporting Boris Johnson to stop in order to raise awareness to the situation of the Kurds in Iraqi Kurdistan.[38]

See also

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Iranian artillery bombs border areas within Kurdistan Region: source . 16 June 2020 . www.kurdistan24.net. 27 June 2020.
  2. Web site: Turkey, Iran defy Iraq's sovereignty in seemingly coordinated strikes. Ahval. 18 June 2020. 21 June 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20200621020436/https://ahvalnews.com/turkey-iraq/turkey-iran-defy-iraqs-sovereignty-seemingly-coordinated-strikes. dead.
  3. News: Ergan . Uğur . PKK'ya Kuzey Irak'ta 'Pençe-Kartal' . 20 June 2020 . Hürriyet . 16 June 2020.
  4. News: "У кого больше дивизий, тот и прав": Турция вонзила в Ирак "Коготь орла" . 20 June 2020 . Crimean Gazette . 16 June 2020.
  5. Web site: Fifth Turkish soldier killed in Kurdistan Region.
  6. 10 killed (16–17 June),https://anfturkce.com/kurdIstan/hpg-heftanin-de-onlarca-asker-cezalandirildi-142330 20 killed (18–19 June),https://anfenglishmobile.com/kurdistan/hpg-reports-heavy-losses-for-the-turkish-army-in-heftanin-44668 26 killed (19 June),https://anfenglishmobile.com/kurdistan/hpg-two-helicopters-damaged-22-soldiers-killed-in-heftanin-44685 34 killed (21 June),https://anfenglishmobile.com/kurdistan/hpg-34-turkish-soldiers-killed-in-heftanin-44732 6 killed (22 June),https://anfenglishmobile.com/kurdistan/hpg-four-turkish-soldiers-killed-in-heftanin-44764 13 killed (23 June),https://anfenglishmobile.com/kurdistan/hpg-31-turkish-soldiers-killed-many-vehicles-destroyed-44828 5 killed (25 June),https://anfenglishmobile.com/kurdistan/hpg-5-turkish-soldiers-killed-in-south-kurdistan-44848 21 killed (26 June),https://anfenglishmobile.com/kurdistan/hpg-22-turkish-soldiers-killed-in-guerrilla-actions-44946 2 killed (27 June),https://anfenglishmobile.com/kurdistan/hpg-6-invading-soldiers-killed-and-1-vehicle-destroyed-44910 total of 300 reported killed
  7. Web site: Pençe-Kaplan ve Pençe Kartal operasyonlarında 83 terörist etkisiz hale getirildi. 9 August 2020. Haberler.com.
  8. Web site: Turkey hits 700 targets in Claw-Tiger Operation: Minister – Turkey News. Hürriyet Daily News.
  9. 3 killed (15 June),https://anfenglishmobile.com/kurdistan/three-guerrillas-martyred-in-tenduerek-van-44829 3 killed (16–17 June),https://anfturkce.com/kurdIstan/hpg-heftanin-de-onlarca-asker-cezalandirildi-142330 2 killed (18–19 June),https://anfenglishmobile.com/kurdistan/hpg-reports-heavy-losses-for-the-turkish-army-in-heftanin-44668 3 killed (19 June),https://anfenglishmobile.com/kurdistan/hpg-two-helicopters-damaged-22-soldiers-killed-in-heftanin-44685https://anfenglishmobile.com/kurdistan/hpg-four-turkish-soldiers-killed-in-heftanin-44764 1 killed (21 June),https://anfenglishmobile.com/kurdistan/hpg-34-turkish-soldiers-killed-in-heftanin-44732 2 killed (25 June),https://anfenglishmobile.com/kurdistan/pjak-a-guerrilla-martyred-three-others-wounded-in-kunamasi-44843https://anfenglishmobile.com/kurdistan/hpg-5-turkish-soldiers-killed-in-south-kurdistan-44848 https://anfturkce.com/kurdIstan/hpg-5-isgalci-tuerk-askeri-cezalandirildi-142690 5 killed (28 June),https://anfturkce.com/kurdIstan/hpg-heftanin-deki-tarihi-direnis-suerueyor-142773 2 killed and 1 captured (2 July),https://anfturkce.com/kurdIstan/heftanin-ve-xakurke-de-5-mevzi-ve-1-radar-imha-edildi-142982 3 killed (10 July),https://anfturkce.com/kurdIstan/hpg-heftanin-de-sehit-duesen-uec-gerillayi-andi-143302 2 killed (13 July),https://anfturkce.com/kurdIstan/heftanin-de-isgalciler-bozguna-ugradi-31-asker-cezalandirildi-143417 5 killed (14 July),https://anfturkce.com/kurdIstan/hpg-heftanin-de-en-az-16-asker-cezalandirildi-143466 1 killed (9 August),https://anfturkce.com/kurdIstan/hava-savunma-birlikleri-Ilk-sehidini-verdi-144412 4 killed (24 July),https://anfturkce.com/kurdIstan/heftanin-de-catismalar-suerueyor-siirt-te-bir-gerilla-sehit-duestue-143894 1 killed (9 August),https://anfturkce.com/kurdIstan/tuerk-ordusuna-agir-darbe-34-isgalci-cezalandirildi-144422 3 killed (11 August),https://anfturkce.com/kurdIstan/heftanin-den-dersim-de-kadar-eylem-144489 1 killed (17 August),https://anfturkce.com/kurdIstan/hpg-Carcella-da-tuerk-helikopteri-duesuerueldue-144690 2 killed (25 August),https://anfturkce.com/kurdIstan/heftanin-de-7-tuerk-askeri-cezalandirildi-144959 2 killed (12 September),https://anfturkce.com/kurdIstan/heftanin-de-7-tuerk-askeri-cezalandirildi-144959 5 killed (3 October),https://anfturkce.com/kurdIstan/hpg-Isgalcilere-karsi-fedaice-savasarak-tarihe-gectiler-146466 3 killed (13 December),https://anfturkce.com/kurdIstan/hpg-heftanin-sehitlerini-saygiyla-aniyoruz-150164 1 killed (4 January),https://anfturkce.com/kurdIstan/hpg-cenga-heftanin-oncu-komutani-bargiran-erkendi-sehit-dustu-150344 4 killed (21 January),https://anfturkce.com/kurdIstan/hpg-kahraman-sehitlerimizin-hayallerini-gerceklestirecegiz-151050 total of 51 reported killed
  10. Web site: Iraqis flee border areas as Turkey strikes Kurdish militants. 22 June 2020. AP NEWS.
  11. News: McKernan. Bethan. 17 June 2020. Turkey launches major attack on Kurdish militants in Iraq. en-GB. The Guardian. 17 June 2020. 0261-3077.
  12. Web site: Turkey launches Operation Claw-Tiger in northern Iraq . Aliyev . Jeyhun . 17 June 2020 . www.aa.com.tr. 27 June 2020.
  13. Web site: Hoffman. Max. The State of the Turkish-Kurdish Conflict. 18 June 2020. Center for American Progress. en-US.
  14. Web site: Turkey bombs Sinjar villages in Iraq where genocide survivors live. The Jerusalem Post | JPost.com.
  15. News: 14 June 2020. Turkish jets strike Kurdish militant targets in northern Iraq. en. Reuters. 15 June 2020.
  16. Web site: MSB duyurdu: Mahmur Kampı çevresi ve Şengal'e hava saldırısı. 17 June 2020. aktifhaber.com. 15 June 2020 . tr.
  17. Web site: 15 June 2020. Turkey carries out dozens of airstrikes in Iraq's Kurdistan region. Bianet.
  18. Web site: 27 November 2019. Kurdistan Region of Iraq: Refugees' Movements Restricted. 15 June 2020. Human Rights Watch. en.
  19. Web site: Turkey's war on the Kurds. newsgroups.derkeiler.com.
  20. Web site: Turkish Military. 15 June 2020. Twitter. en.
  21. Web site: Turkey's Air Force Strikes Kurdish Separatists in Iraq. 15 June 2020. ca.finance.yahoo.com. en-CA.
  22. Web site: Turkish fighter jets attack PKK sites in northern Iraq. 15 June 2020. www.aljazeera.com.
  23. Web site: 'Fighter' killed, civilians roiled as warplanes strike near tourist resort in Sulaimani: mayor. 26 June 2020. www.rudaw.net.
  24. Web site: Corporation. Nalia. Two killed, six others wounded in Turkish airstrike on Sulaimani's Kuna Masi town. 26 June 2020. nrttv.com.
  25. Web site: T.C. Millî Savunma Bakanlığı Twitter. 17 June 2020. Twitter. en.
  26. Web site: Turkey launches Operation Claw-Tiger in northern Iraq. www.aa.com.tr.
  27. Web site: With assault on Iraq, Turkey and Iran cement a partnership in crime. 21 June 2020. Arab News.
  28. Web site: Parliament's Presidency condemns Turkey's recent military attacks inside Kurdistan. 21 June 2020. Kurdistan Parliament. en.
  29. Web site: 16 June 2020. Iraq summons Turkey's ambassador to protest airstrikes. 20 June 2020. Al Arabiya English. en.
  30. Web site: 15 June 2020. Iraq criticizes Turkey for reported air raid on its territory. 20 June 2020. Al Arabiya English. en.
  31. Web site: Iraq fumes against Turkey over deadly drone attack . Al Jazeera . 12 August 2020 .
  32. Web site: Turkey rejects US body's accusations on anti-terror ops – Turkey News. Hürriyet Daily News.
  33. Web site: ROJINFO. 16 June 2020. La Ligue arabe condamne l'incursion de l'armée turque au nord de l'Irak. 17 June 2020. RojInfo. fr-FR.
  34. Web site: Şafak. Yeni. Turkey slams Arab League chief's remarks on operation. 17 June 2020. Yeni Şafak. tr-TR.
  35. Web site: Wali. Zhelwan. Two protesters wounded in demonstration against Turkish airstrikes in Duhok province. 20 June 2020. www.rudaw.net.
  36. Web site: Kurds protest Turkey's attacks on Kurdistan across Germany. 20 June 2020. ANF News. en.
  37. Web site: Actvists [sic] in Linz, Duisburg and Marseille protest Turkish attacks]. 21 June 2020. ANF News. en.
  38. News: Staff. 2020-06-17. No injuries as UK PM Johnson's car shunted by security vehicle: Reuters witnesses. en. Reuters. 2021-04-20.

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Operations Claw-Eagle and Tiger".

Except where otherwise indicated, Everything.Explained.Today is © Copyright 2009-2024, A B Cryer, All Rights Reserved. Cookie policy.