Kurdish officials warned on Wednesday that any Turkish incursion into northern Iraq would threaten the relative stability of the region and called on Ankara to seek peaceful means against violence from separatist rebels.
The Turkish parliament authorized the military to carry out a cross-border offensive against Kurdish rebels in Iraq. But an incursion was not expected immediately as Turkey came under increasing pressure from Washington and Baghdad to use restraint.
Iraq's Deputy Prime Minister Barham Saleh, a Kurd, urged Turkey not to resort to the military offensive. "We call upon our neighbor - Turkey - that they should be very careful not to push this situation beyond the brink," Saleh told Britain's More4 news. "This will be disastrous for Iraq. This will be disastrous for the region as a whole and no one will escape the consequences." |