National Security Advisor Calls PKK Presence in Iraq “Illegal”
ERBIL — Iraq’s National Security Advisor Qasim al-Araji said the presence of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) in Sinjar and other parts of Iraq and Kurdistan Region is illegal.
Araji reaffirmed during an interview with Iraqi News Agency that the PKK should leave all Iraqi territories.
The statement comes weeks after PKK fighters in Sinjar clashed with the Iraqi Army forces over the removal of the statue of a PKK commander. There were reports of casualties after PKK supporters threw handmade bombs at an Iraqi convoy.
Asked about the repeated attacks on the foreign forces and diplomatic missions, Araji emphasized that the groups carry out the attacks under the pretext of forcing foreign troops out while there are no foreign combat missions in Iraq now.
“This is unacceptable. An individual has been arrested by the intelligence service over these attacks, and he has revealed significant information,” Araji pointed out.
“There are no foreign troops in Iraq now, only military advisors who stay at the request of the Iraqi government… Iraq has an agreement with the US covering different areas such as security, economy, health, and education. Iraq should get benefit from these agreements,” the top security official added.