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Kurdish Rebels Offer To Stop Strikes

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Los Angeles Times

Published: October 23, 2007

BAGHDAD - Kurdish separatists said Monday that they would stop their cross-border attacks on Turkish forces if Ankara drops its threats to launch an offensive on their remote mountain enclaves in Iraqi Kurdistan.

Turkey, stung by a Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) raid over the weekend that left at least 12 infantrymen dead, has begun sending troops to the border with Iraq's Kurdish autonomous region to prepare for a possible strike.

Many people fear such a move could destabilize the region of Iraq that has remained relatively peaceful since the U.S.-led invasion in 2003.

'If the Turkish state stops the attacks, this escalating environment of tension will turn into a clash-free one,' said a statement posted on a rebel Web site by the PKK.

By Monday night, tens of thousands of Turkish troops were thought to be amassed along the border.

Officials in Ankara, the capital, confirmed that eight soldiers went missing in the PKK ambush Sunday that left 12 Turkish troops dead.

In an attempt to stave off a regional crisis, President Bush took the unusual step of calling the leaders of Turkey and Iraq on Monday, urging a joint effort against terrorist groups.

The calls came a day after an appeal to Turkey by Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice.

A senior administration official involved in talks with the Turkish government said U.S. diplomatic efforts were focusing on pressuring Kurdish regional officials to stop PKK cells from operating unmolested in northern Iraq.

Bush spoke with Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki by secure video, and the two agreed to try to restrain the PKK, said Gordon Johndroe, spokesman for the White House National Security Council.

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