PKK commander warns of “Kurdish uprising” as clashes continue in Turkey

PKK commander warns of “Kurdish uprising” as clashes continue in Turkey –

Rudaw — A senior commander of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) has warned Ankara of continued violence in the country’s Kurdish southeast, saying “grave consequences” would follow for the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) if clashes persisted.

 
Duran Kalkan who is also a prominent member of the PKK’s military council said the guerrillas would soon take part in what he described as “the Kurdish spring” in Turkey.
 
“The guerrillas have not participated in the clashes but this spring will become the Kurdish uprising,” Kalkan was quoted by PKK media outlets Thursday in reference to the ongoing armed standoff in Turkey’s Kurdish cities.
 
PKK has repeatedly accused the Turkish government of waging an indiscriminate war against the civilian population in Kurdish areas although Ankara has said it is currently clashing with the armed members of the PKK inside the Kurdish cities.
 
The army has said it killed over 900 guerrillas since fighting broke out after a two-year ceasefire collapsed last July.
 
PKK, however, rejects the death toll announced by Ankara and says over 150 civilians have been killed in the attacks, a claim also largely supported by international rights groups which have slammed the government for human rights breaches.
 
Kalkan said PKK had already warned Ankara that if the military operation continued, there would be “a wider response by the public.”
 
“We have warned them that the Kurdish youths will organize new resistance groups and fight the army,” Kalkan said.