Page 82 - America's Failure to Perceive the PKK
P. 82
A A shelter for the PKK:
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North of the 36 Parallel
When the number of Kurdish refugees fleeing from Iraq in the
immediate wake of the Gulf War reached alarming levels, a safe zone
was set up on the Turkish-Iraqi border. In April 1991, the U.S. gov-
ernment warned Iraq not to engage in any activity by land or air in the
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north of the 36 Parallel, where the Kurds were. The area north of the
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36 Parallel being closed to Iraqi planes, a multinational force known
as the Combined Task Force being installed in the region and subse-
quent developments led to the emergence of a de facto Kurdish admin-
istration in northern Iraq. In July 1991, a Poised Hammer Force con-
sisting of 77 planes and helicopters and 1,862 military personnel from
countries such as Turkey, the U.S., Great Britain and France was
installed inside the Turkish border for the protection of the no-fly zone
set up for the Kurds. The presence of the Hammer Force guaranteed
special protection for this Kurdish zone.
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