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Kurdistan National Congress (KNK) Statement:
- Women, men, the old and young are all attacked, wounded and killed. Villages and cities with historical buildings, hospitals, schools, businesses and homes are bombed and wantonly destroyed. Agricultural land with livestock are all being burnt and scorched.
- End the massacres of humans and nature that are taking place in Kurdistan.
The armed forces of the Turkish State have been conducting ruthless operations in Kurdistan where a lot of cities and towns such as Diyarbakir-Sur, Cizre, Sirnak, Silopi, Nusaybin, Gever (Yuksekova), Hezex (Idil), Silvan, Derik and Kerboran (Dargecit) are razed to ground. Thousands of people have been massacred or burnt alive brutally either in broad daylight or in their homes and basements. Many have been left wounded, maimed and disabled.
More than 500.000 people have been displaced from their residential areas and made homeless and jobless. The Turkish army is now rolling out its operations to all over Kurdistan, causing greater destruction and more massacres.
Massacres are carried out by the Turkish Army in the district of Lice in Diyarbakir and surrounding areas
A big operation has commenced after five days of the curfew declared in Lice and 39 surrounding residential areas. Planes and helicopters are being used to torch the hinterland in Lice including the mountains and forests.
The green verdant land, reaching tens of thousand hectares, is now being reduced to ashes together with the vineyards and orchards belonging to the villagers. These resources on which people depend are being systematically destroyed and people are being forced to emigrate elsewhere. A great humanitarian, ecological and economical tragedy is taking place.
Community members engaged in fire fighting are being detained
The people who are trying to put out the fires with their own means are being prevented and the ones who are opposing this are being detained. The journalists, non- governmental organizations and representatives of the political parties from outside of the area are being banned from entering the area. War crimes are being committed and these are being covered up by imposing military zones which exclude activists including journalists.
Urgent call for intervention and solidarity
We call on United Nations, European Union and Council of Europe and any other relevant institutions and individuals to intervene by any means necessary to put pressure on the Turkish State to stop these crimes against humanity. People in Kurdistan are facing an emergency and unless urgent action is taken, there will be irreparable humanitarian and ecological tragedies.
