TURKEY: PRIME MININSTER ERDOGAN DEMANDS THE IMMEDIATE RELEASE OF TURKISH SPECIAL FORCES TROOPS DETAINED BY U.S. SOLDIERS IN NORTHERN IRAQ

Record ID: 629213

  • Title: TURKEY: PRIME MININSTER ERDOGAN DEMANDS THE IMMEDIATE RELEASE OF TURKISH SPECIAL FORCES TROOPS DETAINED BY U.S. SOLDIERS IN NORTHERN IRAQ
  • Date: 5th July 2003
  • Summary: (W4) ANKARA, TURKEY (JULY 5, 2003) (REUTERS) SV: (SOUNDBITE) (Turkish) TURKISH PRIME MINISTER TAYYIP ERDOGAN SAYING: "Unfortunately such an incident happened yesterday at 2 o'clock (1200 GMT). Our foreign minister and our general chief of staff have been watching it closely. Our foreign minister has spoken with the U.S. Secretary of State. We demanded their immediate rele
  • Embargoed: 20th July 2003 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: ANKARA, BAMERNI, BINGOL, TURKEY
  • Country: Turkey
  • Topics: Defence / Military
  • Reuters ID: LVA4QDN7D029BWWZSLOJIUHSQ38V
  • Story Text: Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan has said United States troops had detained Turkish special forces in northern Iraq in what he called an 'ugly incident', and demanded their immediate release.
    A government source said at least 11 and perhaps as many as 20 Turkish soldiers stationed in northern Iraq had been held by U.S. forces on Friday (July 4) afternoon. Ankara had made forceful representations to Washington.
    "Unfortunately such an incident happened yesterday at 2 o'clock (1200 GMT). Our foreign minister and our general chief of staff have been watching it closely. Our foreign minister has spoken with the U.S. Secretary of State. We demanded their immediate release, and they said they are safe. I have not yet talked about the latest situation with the foreign minister. I will do so soon. Then we will have more information," Erdogan told reporters when asked about reports of the detention.
    "They are talking about an event with the municipality in Kirkuk. There is nothing about this that could be approved of or looked upon positively. It's a totally ugly incident, it's something that shouldn't have happened. This is not a way to act towards a political ally," he added.
    Hurriyet newspaper said the Turkish soldiers were accused of planning an attack on a regional Kurdish governor. Government sources were unable to confirm this detail.
    Deputy armed forces chief Yasar Buyukanit was quoted as saying they cannot understand the Americans aims.
    U.S. officials in Ankara said they had no details of such an incident.
    Turkey has long expressed fears that Kurds in northern Iraq might move to create an independent state. Ankara fears this could reignite a separatist rebellion in its largely Kurdish southeast that resulted in some 30,000 deaths in the 1980s and 1990s.
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