Turkish Airstrike on Civilians Initiated by US Drone
19/05/2012 RUDAW – ERBIL, Kurdistan Region — According to a CNN report on Thursday, the U.S. provided the information that lead to airstrikes by the Turkish military last December, killing 34 civilians. After a routine air patrol in northern Iraq, Turkish military were informed by a U.S. team monitoring video footage from a predator drone (an unmanned aerial vehicle) that several people as well as animals were moving toward the Turkish border. The U.S. military staff who reported the sighting could not distinguish between civilians and fighters. Shortly afterward, the Turkish military sent warplanes to the site.
Turkey warns oil majors against Cyprus gas bid
19 May 2012 / REUTERS, İSTANBUL, TURKEY – Turkey said on Friday that companies bidding to develop Cyprus’ offshore gas fields would be shut out of Turkish energy projects, amid a spat between the rivals about who has rights to potentially vast reserves in the east Mediterranean. Turkey does not recognise the Nicosia government, seen by the rest of the world as Cyprus’ sole authority, and wants offshore exploration to await a peace settlement between the Greek and Turkish communities, estranged since a 1974 Turkish invasion of the north of the island.
Fear of Clashes Between Kurdish Groups in Syria
19/05/2012 By ADIB ABDULMAJID – AMSTERDAM, Netherlands – As anti-Assad demonstrations continue to take place across Kurdish areas of Syria, incidences of violence have been occurring between supporters of the Kurdish National Council (KNC) – a coalition of 10 Kurdish Parties – and those of Democratic Union Party (PYD), a Syrian affiliation of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK). In the last three weeks, the Kurdish city of Qamishli – where Kurds took to the street at the launch of the Syrian uprising in March 2011 – saw unprecedented unrest amongst demonstrators. Tensions arose when PYD supporters began raising the PKK flag and images of its leader Abdullah Ocalan, along with using slogans against the KNC that accused the council of supporting a non-Kurdish agenda.
Qasimo Mosque, a gathering point for Kurdish demonstrators west of Qamishli, saw a few clashes between supporters of the KNC and PYD. The national Kurdish flag was repeatedly burned by PYD protesters, activists reported, which led to a swell in anger amongst Kurds.
GRIECHENLAND + CYPERN + ISRAEL : JOINT VENTURE
Es brodelt im Mittelmeer / EINE NEUE EUROPÄISCHE ENERGIEKARTE
Griechenland, Zypern und Israel haben ein Abkommen zur gemeinsamen Ausbeutung neuentdeckter Gasvorkommen im Mittelmeer geschlossen.
Das sorgt für Konflikte zwischen Griechenland und der Türkei.
von Ralf Hess – jungle world – 18.5.2012 – Die Festlegung der Seegrenzen zwischen Griechenland und der Türkei ist im Verhältnis beider Staaten eine heikle Angelegenheit. Nicht unbedingt, weil griechische Inseln direkt vor dem türkischen Festland liegen und damit der traditionelle »Feind« für beide Seiten täglich sichtbar ist. Die Gebietsansprüche im Mittelmeer sind aus ökonomischen Gründen Anlass für Konflikte. Lange Zeit verzichtete Griechenland auf eine Verschiebung der eigenen Seegrenzen und damit auf eine eigene 200-Meilen-Zone, in erster Linie, weil man die Türkei nicht provozieren wollte. Doch die finanzielle Situation des Landes sorgt nun dafür, dass der griechischen Regierung kaum eine andere Möglichkeit bleibt, als alle potentiellen Einnahmequellen zu nutzen. Denn sowohl vor der griechischen Insel Kreta als auch vor Zypern werden unter dem Meeresboden bedeutende Gasvorkommen vermutet, einige wurden bereits entdeckt. Dadurch könnte die politische Interessenlage im östlichen Mittelmeer sich stark ändern. Denn auch Israel möchte sich an der Ausbeutung der Felder beteiligen.
ROBOSKI MASSACRE: “The Intelligence Source Will Be Investigated When Necessary”
BIANET 19.5.2012 – “The information and documents provided from the General Staff will be assessed and the source of intelligence will be investigated when necessary” told Diyarbakir Prosecution Office in charge of the massacre investigation. “We’ll continue to base our investigation on the four-hour Heron images sent from General Staff” announced Diyarbakır Special Authority Prosecutor in charge of the Roboski massacre investigation. 34 civilians from the villages of Gülyazı (Bujeh) and Ortasu (Roboski) were killed in a military aerial strike on 28 December 2011 in the Uludere district (south-eastern province of Şırnak).
Turkish PM links Uludere raid row to elections in US
ANKARA – Hürriyet Daily News – 19.5.2012 – Erdoğan accuses a US daily of trying to undermine the Obama administration with a story over the Uludere raid failure last year. The Wall Street Journal may be part of a project to undermine the Barack Obama administration as the U.S. presidential election approaches, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has said. In late December 2011 34 civilians were killed in a Turkish airstrike at Uludere after they were wrongly suspected of being terrorists. Questions as to the source of the intelligence which led to the mistake have been widely disputed in Turkey, and no clear answer was forthcoming. The Wall Street Journal’s report stated that the initial intelligence leading to the attack originated from an American Predator drone.
Turkish army denied U.S. provided intelligence on Roboski
18 May 2012 – ANF - President Abdullah Gül said cooperation with U.S. is “normal but first intelligence came from our armed forces”. Turkish General Staff released a statement regarding the Wall Street Journal news on 16 May which stated ‘intelligence on Roboski was provided by U.S.drones’.
Underlining that the WSJ news doesn’t reflect the truth, the General Staff claimed that the first intelligence related to the Uludere attack was taken by Turkish unmanned aerial vehicles. In a press statement before the U.S. visit for the NATO summit, Turkish President Abdullah Gül also evaluated the news about ‘intelligence on Roboski’. “We should trust our national sources – he said – and believe the statement made by our authorities in this respect. We received intelligence from external sources after making the first determinations by our own means. This is an ordinary process as we are in cooperation with the U.S. in the fight against terror.
An Assyrian Plea From Turkey: Come Back to Your Village
Mardin, Turkey – 18.5.2012 – Aziz Demir is one of the many returnees. In 2006, after living in Switzerland for 22 years Aziz Demir and his wife and three children returned to the village of Elbeyendi in the southern Turkish province of Mardin.
Demir, the village headman, calls now on the rest of the Assyrian Diaspora (many of whom live in western countries like the US and Europe) to return home. Demir mentiones that the Assyrian homeland is in the land stretching from western Iran through northern Iraq and Syria to southeastern Turkey. Demir says that the Assyrians have been living in this land for more than thousands of years.
Syrian Opposition Head Offers to Resign
BEIRUT (AP) 18.5.2012 – By Zeina Karam – Syria’s main opposition council is crumbling under the weight of infighting and divisions over issues that cut to the heart of the revolution, including accusations that the movement is becoming as autocratic as the regime it wants to drive out. The slow disintegration of the Syrian National Council, which has become the international face of the uprising, could complicate Western efforts to bolster the opposition, just as President Bashar Assad’s regime gathers momentum in its crackdown on dissent.
On Thursday, SNC leader Burhan Ghalioun said he was ready to step down once a replacement is found, amid mounting criticism of his leadership.
Syrians Continue The Peaceful Demonstrations, Assad Militiamen Continue The Explosion Charade
Syrian Revolution News Round-up / Day 431
The Assad regime announced that it foiled a terrorist attack in Deir Azzour, as it hindered the detonation of an armed car. The regime also announced that it intercepted a car carrying 600 kg of explosives in the capital. The regime has been trying to convince the international community of the presence of terrorist cells in Syria, and it seems it is succeeding despite the poor planning and the mounting evidence of its involvement. UN secretary general Ban Ki Moon said that he thinks al-Qaeda might be responsible for last week’s attacks in Damascus. Meanwhile, UN observers carried on their monitoring mission, as mission director Robert Mood announced that peace is still attainable.