According to reports, over 600 villages in South Kurdistan are at risk of being abandoned due to Turkish bombings. In the first half of 2024 alone, 833 air strikes were registered in the region.
Since 17 April 2024, the Turkish state has been attacking the Medya Defense Areas of Metîna, Zap and Avaşîn in South Kurdistan from the air and on the ground.
Since the guerrillas are difficult to strike, the Turkish state is pursuing a policy of systematic attacks on the civilian population. According to the Christian Peacemaker Team (CPT), Turkey bombed South Kurdistan at least 833 times in the first six months of 2024. These are just the officially registered attacks. At least eight civilians were killed. According to official figures, more than 500 villages in South Kurdistan have been abandoned since 2020 due to the attacks.
Journalist Baran Germiyanî told Mezopotamya News Agency about the situation in the region. He said that the attacks in an area up to about 40 kilometers south of the Turkish border are particularly massive. Germiyanî warned that about 600 villages are seriously threatened to be affected by the attacks.
Over 1,000 air strikes this year
Germiyanî said: "According to the statistics of some organizations that monitor the bombings by the Turkish army, there have been over 800 attacks in South Kurdistan this year. However, according to the data we received on the ground, we can say that there were more than a thousand. Hundreds of villages have been completely abandoned since 2015 and more than 600 villages are currently under threat. At the beginning of April, Turkey also carried out a large-scale air strike on Gare. The aim was to drive out the residents of the villages around the mountain and force them to give up their land permanently. This was intended to open a gateway for attacks. The likelihood of another attack on Gare is very high in the coming phase."
KDP and Iraq remain silent on the attacks
The journalist criticized the KDP government and the Iraqi government, saying that "despite all these attacks, Iraq has not taken a position and continues not to do so. The people who live in these regions are victims. They have had to leave their homes and cannot return to their land. They cannot engage in agriculture or livestock farming.
Despite Turkey's attacks since 2015, neither the Iraqi government nor the Hewlêr [Erbil] government have shown any reaction. The KDP is setting up military bases in the areas attacked by Turkey.
Turkish soldiers are carrying out attacks wearing Peshmerga uniforms. The KDP has usurped all power and has handed over its bases to Turkey. Everyone can see that the KDP is building military roads and providing logistical support to the Turkish state."
