This statement was published by REPAK Kurdish Women’s Relation Office:

14 October 2015

The Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) announced a unilateral ceasefire on Saturday, 10 October 2015, underlining that with this announcement they react to the calls of a number of civil society organizations, international organizations and forces. The Turkish government immediately rejected the ceasefire.

Turkey is going to hold re-elections on 1 November 2015. The AKP government tried to misuse the clashes between Kurdish guerilla forces and the Turkish army for the prevention of democratic elections in Kurdish towns. The PKK declared that with this unilateral ceasefire it aims to give the pro-Kurdish People’s Democratic Party (HDP) the necessary support for elections.

The same day, a bomb attack killed at least 97 people, mainly Kurds and Leftists, in Ankara. A lot of people in Turkey interpreted the attack in Ankara as an answer of the Turkish state to the PKK-ceasefire. Nevertheless yesterday Murat Karayilan, a top PKK commander, declared “We are obliged to maintain this halt to hostilities, without succumbing to doubt, as a legacy for those killed in Ankara”. Kurdish guerilla fighters declared that they will not attack Turkish military, but would defend themselves against Turkish attacks.

And these attacks are steadily increasing. It is clear that Turkey is trying to force an end of the unilateral ceasefire by increasing military operations. On Sunday, one day after the announcement of the ceasefire, Turkish warplanes bombed a guerilla cemetery in Lice/Amed and killed 8 fighters there. The same day a military operation was started in Cudi. Clashes between guerilla fighters and soldiers are the result.

The Turkish army yesterday attacked guerilla forces in Yuksekova/Hakkari and by doing so led to clashes, which still continue. Parallel to the clashes Turkish air force is bombing the area. Until now 4 guerilla fighters got killed and 7 injured. There is no information about the number of killed soldiers.

There is no need to talk about the aims of the AKP government with this military action. But it is obvious that there is an urgent need to overtake defense of the ceasefire. Those, who called the PKK to stop its military actions should now put pressure on the Turkish government and call it to stop its military attacks and operations against Kurdish guerilla forces and civilians. The forces that called for ceasefire must now urge the Turkish government and condemn its operations. Otherwise they will lose their credibility.

REPAK Kurdish Women’s Relation Office  رێکخراووی پەیوەندییەکانی ئافرەتانی کورد Navenda Pêwendiyan a Jinên Kurd  منظمة المرأة الكردية للعلاقات +964 (0) 750 197 06 44 Hewlêr – Southern Kurdistan / Erbil – Kurdistan Region in Iraq