Turk envoy tells Iraq no timetable for troop pullout

Source: Reuters

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Turkey will not set a timetable for the withdrawal of troops fighting Kurdish guerrillas in northern Iraq, a Turkish envoy said on Wednesday after crisis talks in Baghdad, despite U.S. pressure for a quick resolution.

Turkey's military General Staff said another 77 Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) rebels had been killed in heavy fighting since Tuesday night, taking the death toll among the rebels to 230 since the operation began a week ago.

"Our objective is clear, our mission is clear and there is no timetable until ... those terrorist bases are eliminated," senior Turkish envoy Ahmet Davutoglu said after talks with Iraqi Foreign Minister Hoshiyar Zebari.

Thousands of Turkish troops crossed the border last Thursday to root out PKK fighters who have used mountainous northern Iraq as a base for their fight for self-rule in the mainly Kurdish southeast of Turkey since the 1990s.



Read more: http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080227/wl_nm/turkey_iraq_dc

"Turkish forces will stand down when the Kurdish forces stand up."

I hope Bush didn't get any promises the jets wouldn't be used in Iraq in exchange for the deal.

And talk about your irony.

"It's very important that the Turks make this operation as short as possible and then leave," Gates said before departing India. "They have to be mindful of Iraqi sovereignty. I measure quick in terms of days, a week or two, something like that, not months."

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080227/ap_on_re_mi_ea/gates

I'm so looking forward to when Americans are extraordinary renditioned, waterboarded, designated "enemy combatants" and Gitmo'd, coz then we'll know George W. bUsh is the true world leader and everyone else just follows in his footsteps!



Good fucking grief how can one stupid little cabal fuck up so much in so short a time.

Source: MSNBC/AP

5 troops also said killed in night-long clashes as more soldiers head to fight

CUKURCA, Turkey - Turkish troops have killed 77 Kurdish rebels in night-long clashes in northern Iraq, the military said Wednesday. Five soldiers were also killed.

Meanwhile, more than 40 military trucks ferried troops toward the Iraqi border Wednesday, a day after heavy snow slowed down Turkey's ground incursion against Kurdish rebels.

F-16 warplanes and helicopters were seen flying over the border town of Cukurca toward Iraq.

The death toll for the rebels reached to 230, the military said. The death toll for soldiers stood at 24. The military said three pro-government village guards were also killed during the operation that began last week.

Read more: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/23366588/

Follow what the USA does. We're the world "leader", after all.