Turkish Defense Minister Hulusi Akar blasted outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) of using slander and defamation against Turkey as a method for surviving a collapsing process.
“There are no chemical weapons in Turkey’s armed forces’ inventory,” Akar said in response to recent allegations over Turkey’s chemical warfare against PKK militants in Northern Iraq.
“Their intentions are clear. Every time the terrorist organization suffer great losses, they try to use slander and defamation as a way out. They are trying to defame the success of the Turkish Armed Forces and create confusion in people’s minds,” Akar said.
“It’s not an allegation, it’s an utterly despicable slander,” he said following a cabinet meeting on Monday.
Last week, the video footages posted on social media, showing the PKK militants who were allegedly suffering from chemical weapon attacks, prompted political opposition and human rights defenders’ heavy criticism against Turkish military forces.
Turkey’s pro-Kurdish People’s Democratic Party (HDP) called on international institutions to investigate the allegations concerning the use of chemical weapons by the Turkish military in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq (KRI).
“There are serious reports and allegations that Turkey has been using chemical agents in its military operations since 2021 in the territories of the Kurdistan Regional Government in Iraq, which according to international law constitutes a war crime, and some images recently published by some media outlets further support such allegations,” the Executive Council of HDP said.
Turkey dismissed the accusations.
“They make statements that do not comply with moral, legal or human values, and they slander, especially based on the understanding of ‘leave a trace of mud’, which is intended to create a perception abroad. These statements are not acceptable,” Akar said.
Akar said that Turkey respects international law.
“Beyond that, we have beliefs, humanitarian and spiritual values,” he said.
PKK is an armed group fighting an insurgency against Turkish military for Kurdish autonomous rights since 1984 and is designated as a terrorist organization by the United States and the European Union.
Turkey frequently conducts military operations into Northern Iraq where PKK maintains its main headquarters.
Source:gerceknews
