Turkey declines to pledge quick Iraq exit, US mounts pressureAFP
Published: Thursday February 28, 2008
Turkey insisted Thursday that its offensive against Kurdish rebels in northern Iraq will continue "as long as necessary," while US President George Bush mounted pressure on Ankara to wrap up its incursion quickly.
As US Defence Secretary Robert Gates held talks in Ankara, Turkish warplanes bombed separatist Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) positions in northern Iraq and intensive fighting was reported on the ground near a major rebel base.
Seven Kurdish rebels were killed during clashes Wednesday, bringing to 237 the number of separatist fighters killed in a week of fighting, the Turkish army reported Thursday.
In Washington, Bush said the incursion, launched on February 21, should be "limited and... temporary in nature."
He urged the Turkish military "to move quickly, achieve their objective and then get out... as quickly as possible."
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