Iraq Rejects Turkish Strikes in Kurdistan Region, Seeks Resolution 

A man waves an Iraqi national flag as protesters gather in Baghdad's Tahrir square to mark the 4th anniversary of the 2019 anti-government demonstrations on October 1, 2023. (AFP)
A man waves an Iraqi national flag as protesters gather in Baghdad's Tahrir square to mark the 4th anniversary of the 2019 anti-government demonstrations on October 1, 2023. (AFP)
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Iraq Rejects Turkish Strikes in Kurdistan Region, Seeks Resolution 

A man waves an Iraqi national flag as protesters gather in Baghdad's Tahrir square to mark the 4th anniversary of the 2019 anti-government demonstrations on October 1, 2023. (AFP)
A man waves an Iraqi national flag as protesters gather in Baghdad's Tahrir square to mark the 4th anniversary of the 2019 anti-government demonstrations on October 1, 2023. (AFP)

Iraq rejects repeated Turkish air strikes or the presence of Turkish bases in its Kurdistan region and hopes to come to an agreement with Ankara to solve this problem, Iraqi President Abdul-Latif Rashid said in comments aired on Monday.

Türkiye said on Sunday it carried out air strikes in northern Iraq that destroyed 20 targets belonging to the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) after the militant group said it orchestrated the first bomb attack in Ankara in years.

Türkiye regards the PKK as a terrorist group and regularly carries out air strikes in northern Iraq, which has long been outside the direct control of the Baghdad government.

Türkiye has also has sent commandos and set up military bases on Iraqi territory to support its offensives.

"These violations are rejected by the Iraqi people, the (Kurdistan) region and all of Iraq's inhabitants," Rashid said in an interview with broadcaster Al-Hadath, a short clip of which was aired on Monday.

It was not clear whether the interview was filmed before or after Sunday's Turkish air strikes.

Rashid said such strikes sometimes killed civilians, including people visiting the region who "become victims of Turkish bombing."

Türkiye has denied targeting civilians and says it works to avoid civilian casualties through its coordination with Iraqi authorities.

Rashid is a member of the Iraqi Kurdish PUK party that has close ties to Iran and has criticized Türkiye’s strikes in Iraq's north.

Rashid said Baghdad hoped to come to an agreement with Ankara to resolve the issue in a manner similar to a security agreement Iraq has inked with Iran to deal with Iranian Kurdish separatist groups in the Kurdistan region.



Iran FM to Visit Syria, Türkiye as Tehran, Moscow Back Damascus Regime against Opposition Advances

 Opposition fighters step on a picture of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in Aleppo, Syria, late Friday, Nov. 29, 2024. (AP)
Opposition fighters step on a picture of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in Aleppo, Syria, late Friday, Nov. 29, 2024. (AP)
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Iran FM to Visit Syria, Türkiye as Tehran, Moscow Back Damascus Regime against Opposition Advances

 Opposition fighters step on a picture of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in Aleppo, Syria, late Friday, Nov. 29, 2024. (AP)
Opposition fighters step on a picture of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in Aleppo, Syria, late Friday, Nov. 29, 2024. (AP)

Iran's foreign minister Abbas Araqchi will visit Damascus on Sunday, before visiting Türkiye as part of a regional tour, foreign ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei told state media on Saturday.

Earlier, Araqchi and his Russian counterpart voiced support for Syria on during a major attack by opposition groups, Iranian state media reported.  

Araqchi told Russia's Sergei Lavrov in a phone call that the attacks were part of an Israeli-US plan to destabilize the region, state media said.  

According to a statement from the Russian Foreign Ministry about the call, both sides "expressed extreme concern about the dangerous escalation of the situation in Syria due to the terrorist offensive by armed groups in the Aleppo and Idlib provinces".  

The ministers agreed on the need to intensify joint efforts aimed at stabilizing the situation in Syria.  

Iran's foreign ministry also condemned what it called "aggression by terrorist elements" against its consulate in Syria's city of Aleppo during the current opposition advances, Iranian state media reported.  

"The consul-general and all members of the consulate of Iran in Aleppo are in good health," spokesperson Baghaei told state media.  

Earlier on Saturday, Russia's Lavrov spoke on the matter with his Turkish counterpart, Hakan Fidan.  

For his part, Fidan spoke by phone with Qatari Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani on Saturday to discuss the situation in Syria, Turkish Foreign Ministry sources said.  

He also spoke with Lebanese caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati.