United Nations Security Council Urged To Intervene On The Rapidly Deteriorating Situation Of The Turkmen In Northern Iraq

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July 29, 2013

United Nations Security Council Urged To Intervene On The Rapidly Deteriorating Situation Of The Turkmen In Northern Iraq

Following a series of rapidly increasing attacks against ethnic Turkmen in Iraq, including the recent suicide attacks of 25 June 2013 in Tuz Khurmato, the Unrepresented Nations and Peoples Organization (UNPO) and The Iraqi Turkmen Front (ITF) urge the United Nations to intervene against the violent terrorist activities which continue to target the Turkmen and other ethnic communities in the northern region of Iraq.

URGENT APPEAL                                                                                            FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Brussels, 29 July 2013

Further to the previous appeals to the European Parliament of February 2013 and July 8th 2013, and following a seriesof rapidly increasing attacks against ethnic Turkmen in Iraq, including the recent suicide attacks of 25 June 2013 inTuz Khurmato, the Unrepresented Nations and Peoples Organization (UNPO) and The Iraqi Turkmen Front (ITF)urge the United Nations to intervene against the violent terrorist activities which continue to target the Turkmenand other ethnic communities in the northern region of Iraq.

On 23 July 2013, at least 60 Iraqi civilians were killed or wounded in two bomb attacks targeting two mosques in
Wahid Athar, a Turkmen neighbourhood of Kirkuk. Police sources report that a first bomb exploded inside Omar bin Abdulaziz Mosque, to be followed by a second explosion in another mosque in Wahid Athar. The incidents resulted in the death of 18 worshippers and wounded at least 42 others. The innocent victims of the attacks belonged to the Turkmen community and were performing Taraweeh prayers. According to recent reports of the Iraqi Turkmen Front Human Rights Office in Kirkuk, there have been over 68 targeted attacks that have been aimed at Turkmen individuals and assemblies in the last 6 months, and violence against this ethnic community is escalating dangerously.

UNPO wishes to call on the United Nations to take immediate action in regards to this urgent situation through a peacekeeping intervention. The Iraqi government, not withholding to the principles of the Iraqi Constitution, is repeatedly failing to provide protection and safety to these communities. Terror is spreading amongst Turkmen civilians as the threat of a potential disintegration of their ethnicity becomes more and more imminent. If no action is taken, as violence continues to persist, the looming threat of a greater civil conflict is soon to become a tangible reality. It is the international community’s responsibility to therefore intervene by providing protection to these innocent civilians, in order to prevent the situation from taking an unwished and irreversible turn.

Marino Busdachin
UNPO Secretary General

Full PDF of Appeal

- See more at: http://www.unpo.org/article/16219#sthash.FMWxHhUF.dpuf

UNPO General Secretary Calls for Urgent Action Regarding the Iraqi Turkmen

http://www.unpo.org/downloads/593.pdf

February 4, 2013

UNPO Urges Action To Protect Iraqi Turkmen

http://www.unpo.org/article/15452

 

UNPO General Secretary Calls for Urgent Action

Regarding the Iraqi Turkmen

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European Parliament Must Urge Iraqi Government

To Provide Safe Haven For Iraqi Turkmen

Brussels, 4 February 2013 - The Unrepresented Nations and Peoples Organization (UNPO) and the Iraqi Turkmen Front (ITF) are calling for the European Parliament to exercise pressure on the government of Iraq, to put security measures into place to protect the Turkmen minority as a matter of urgency. This appeal follows a series of attacks against ethnic Turkmen in Iraq, including an attack on 23 January 2013 in Tuz Khurmato at the funeral of a civil servant, in which at least 42 people were killed and a further 117 wounded.

Unfortunately, this is far from a unique occurrence. Attacks on the Turkmen have been increasing at an alarming rate in recent months – including the burning alive of two teachers – as tensions between the Arab and Kurdish populations in the disputed territories rise. All too often, the Turkmen community has been caught up in the collateral damage of this conflict and many Turkmen feel both marginalised and victimised by their fellow Iraqis.

The UNPO welcomes the statement by EU High Representative Catherine Ashton in which she condemned the funeral attack in Tuz Khurmato. However, more needs to be done to specifically protect the Turkmen community, which has suffered disproportionately from violence in Iraq in recent times.

The Iraqi government has repeatedly pledged greater protection for the Turkmen community, but any action on the issue has not been forthcoming. The UNPO and the ITF therefore urge the European Parliament, moreover in light of the visit of members of the EU Delegation for Relations with Iraq, to put pressure on the Iraqi government to fulfill its obligations to the Turkmen community, guaranteeing them a safe and secure environment in which to live.

Marino Busdachin

UNPO Secretary General

For media queries please contact:

Maud Vanwalleghem |  +32 251 314 59 | mv@unpo.org 

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