Barsam Mohammadi – regional issues expert

Following the recent bombings by the Turkish army, significant damage has been done to Dohuk’s property and infrastructure, and the humanitarian situation has worsened, so that it is now in need of humanitarian assistance.

It is said that Turkey has 5-10 thousand military forces and about 80 military bases in northern Iraq, which they have unilaterally built in Erbil, Dohuk and Nineveh provinces without any security agreement, and sometimes they have extended to a depth of 40-105 kilometers into Iraqi territory.

Turkish air and ground attacks on Iraqi territory in 2024 have increased significantly compared to the previous year. As it has been said, in the last six months, it has carried out nearly 1100 attacks in the Kurdistan Region. This is while Türkiye had carried out about 1500 attacks in 2023.

Based According to existing estimates, according to the growing trend of military operations of the Turkish army in Iraq, if these operations are not stopped, in the near future more than 600 villages in the region of the region, which are in the crosshairs of the Turkish military forces, will be deserted.

Despite the repeated warnings of the Islamic RBase esistance groups, various political parties and currents and the Iraqi government regarding the withdrawal of Turkish military forces from this country, Ankara has not only taken any steps to stop the operation and withdraw its military forces from the Iraqi territory, but also by advancing Mostly in the Kurdistan region and the construction of different and new bases, it has strengthened its foothold in this country.

Regarding Turkish military operations in northern Iraq, three issues are important:

One: The Turkish government claims that in coordination with the Iraqi government, it is carrying out ground and air attacks in the northern areas of this country, intending to confront the PKK terrorists. And this is even though many inside Iraq are against carrying out such attacks and operations.

For example, Aqeel Al-Redini, a member of the Nasr coalition in the Iraqi parliament, has said in a statement that “there is a wide concern about Turkey’s recent intrusion into Iraqi territory because this country has established military checkpoints and patrols and in line with the creation of new military bases.”

The Islamic Resistance of Iraq, which is considered the “most important pillar of the fight against terrorism” in this country, has repeatedly stated that it is against any kind of Turkish military presence and operations in any part of Iraq under the pretext of fighting terrorism.

Two: The next and more important issue is that there is no clear “demarcation” between the so-called anti-terrorist operations of the Turkish government in Iraq and the actions that have led to the illegal presence and occupation of areas of this country’s territory; This is the point that has caused “a lot of concern” not only inside Iraq but also in the region.

If the real purpose of Turkey’s military operations in Iraq is to fight terrorism, firstly, this should be done with the agreement of the Iraqi government or the Kurdistan Region or the resistance groups, which is not the case. Secondly, the damages and casualties of Turkey’s military operations in infrastructure and human dimensions show that carrying out such operations, rather than destroying the terrorists and removing their danger, has caused a lot of damage to public property and caused dozens of civilians to be killed and wounded.

Three: as mentioned, In the framework of the military operation against the PKK, which started in June 2021, Turkey has built dozens of military bases up to 105 kilometers deep in Iraq with nearly 10 thousand soldiers and has controlled various parts of northern Iraq, including dozens of villages in Dohuk. It has occupied itself.

Only in recent weeks, more than 140 villages in the north of the Kurdistan region have been evacuated due to Turkish air and artillery attacks, which basically have no relevance or proportion to the anti-terrorist claims of the Turkish government in Iraq.

In addition, it is said that Turkey does not pay any attention to the sensitivities and internal considerations of Iraq and the public opinion of this country in carrying out its military operations in northern Iraq, which means a violation of the territorial integrity and national sovereignty of Baghdad.

According to the above points, it can be concluded that Turkey’s policy of countering terrorism in Iraq is actually a “cover” to advance the “strategic and long-term” goals of this country regarding northern Iraq, including obtaining oil and gas resources, creating a crisis to gain political concessions points. It is also the integration of domestic public opinion in political processes and the realization of historical and territorial claims by exploiting the power vacuum in Iraq.

Ankara’s military actions in Iraq in a situation where Turkey is facing many problems in the economic fields and there are many objections to such attacks inside Iraq, in addition to the risk of a “full-scale war” in Iraqi Kurdistan. It will definitely create important challenges for the Turkish government in the future, especially in terms of public opinion.

This is even though these attacks not only do not help to eradicate terrorism in Iraq but also cause the spread of instability and insecurity in Iraq and subsequently in the region. Iran’s policy in dealing with terrorism is a successful model in this field. The Islamic Republic of Iran is the largest and most important country in the region, which has been at the forefront of fighting terrorism, especially in Syria and Iraq, for more than ten years, which is done within the framework of legal mechanisms and with the coordination of the relevant governments, and has achieved significant achievements so far. Iran’s anti-terrorist measures, which have been carried out in coordination with Damascus and Baghdad, and even the Kurdistan region, not only did not cause any damage to public property and infrastructure and did not even lead to the occupation of one meter of the territory of these countries but also destroyed ISIS’s presence in these countries.