Erdogan on Zakho attack: “We can not do such a thing”

Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan denied responsibility for the attack on a summer resort near Zakho in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq last week that killed nine including two children and wounded 22 and blamed it on the PKK (Kurdistan Workers’ Party) in a televised interview with Turkish TRT Haber TV.

“I talked to the Americans, to the Russian side. I told them: Don’t be fooled here. I told the same thing to our Iraqi friends, brothers. Be careful with your statements; it is impossible for Turkey to commit such an act against friends, brothers. We can not do such a thing,” Erdogan said adding that the attack was aimed at harming Turkey-Iraq ties.

Erdogan said he was saddened by Iraq’s decision to pull back from the Islamic Games to be held in Konya next month.

The Iraqi government claimed it had evidence showing Turkey was behind the Zakho attack. An Iraqi official said that 155 mm artillery shells have been collected from the scene, an ammunition that is only used by Turkey in the region.

Iraqi Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein on Sunday announced that Iraq has filed a complaint against Turkey to the UNSC demanding an emergency session over Wednesday’s artillery attack. The Council is set to hold an emergency meeting on Tuesday to address the incident, Hussein said.