Turkey's attack on Zakho sparks condemnation, MP calls parliament to convene

Shafaq News/ Turkey's artillery attack on a resort on Zakho prompted the outrage of lawmakers and government officials amid calls for calling in an extraordinary session of the Iraqi parliament.

Turkish airstrikes killed eight tourists in northern Iraq and wounded over 20, Iraqi Kurdish officials and the Iraqi army said on Wednesday.

At least four missiles struck the resort area of Barakh in the Zakho district in the semi-autonomous Kurdish-run region. All the casualties were Iraqi citizens.

Lawmaker Mohammad Hasan told Shafaq News Agency that the State of Law bloc will file a request to hold an extraordinary session of the parliament in the presence of the foreign minister to denounce the attack.

"It is not a war. Turkey, however, violated our sovereignty, killing and injuring innocent Iraqi citizens," he added, calling the foreign ministry to send a protest note to the Turkish side.

In a tweet he shared earlier today, member of the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) parliamentary bloc, Sherwan al-Duberdani, said, "condemning and denouncing the Turkish attack on Zakho is not enough when there are more than 40 Iraqis killed and injured."

The lawmaker called for summoning the Iraqi prime minister to inquire about the government's silence and come up with a proper response to the attack.

Spokesperson to the Emtidad movement Manar al-Obaidi said that the government shall take strict positions regarding the trade exchange with Turkey to protest the disdain it shows to Iraq.

Iraq's Parliament Speaker Mohammad al-Halboosi denounced rendering Iraq an open battlefield to settle regional scores and external conflicts that only the Iraqis pay for.

Al-Halboosi urged the government to take the necessary steps to protect Iraq and its people.

Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi dispatched a delegation to the area led by Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein.

Turkey regularly carries out airstrikes into northern Iraq and has sent commandos to support its offensives targeting elements of the outlawed Kurdistan Worker’s Party PKK.

Wednesday’s attack marked the first time that tourists had been killed in the frequent attacks by Turkey in the area.

In April, Turkey launched its latest offensive, named Operation Claw Lock, in parts of northern Iraq - part of a series of cross-border operations started in 2019 to combat the outlawed PKK who are based in the mountainous regions of northern Iraq.

The PKK, which is listed as a terrorist organization by Turkey, the United States and the European Union, and has led an insurgency in southeast Turkey since 1984, which has killed tens of thousands of people.

Ankara has pressed Baghdad to root out PKK elements from the northern region. Iraq, in turn, has said Turkey’s ongoing attacks are in breach of its sovereignty.