Lawmaker demands al-Sudani to probe Turkey's use of chemical weapons in the Kurdistan region
Shafaq News/ Iraqi lawmaker Soran Omar on Saturday lambasted Prime Minister Mohammad Shia al-Sudani's cabinet silence toward Turkey's use of chemical weapons in Iraq's northern region of Kurdistan.
Addressing al-Sudani, Omar said in an official correspondence that the first deputy speaker of the Iraqi parliament, Muhsen al-Mandalawi, communicated a correspondence to the foreign ministry to probe the matter, but the latter is yet to take any measures.
"Dozens of citizens had fallen victims of those attacks. We submit to you some reports that prove Turkey's use of chemical weapons in order to form a committee to investigate the issue," he said.
International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War (IPPNW), which represents thousands of doctors and campaigns to prevent armed violence, said it found indirect evidence of possible violations during a September mission to northern Iraq.
"The chemical weapons lie is a futile attempt by those who try to whitewash and airbrush terrorism. Our fight against terrorism will continue with resolve and determination," presidential spokesman Ibrahim Kalin said on Twitter.
Omer Celik, spokesman of President Tayyip Erdogan's ruling AK Party, described those who make chemical weapons' allegations as part of "a vile slander network".
In its report, the IPPNW said Defence Minister Hulusi Akar openly acknowledged in Turkey's parliament last year the use of tear gas during an operation against the PKK in northern Iraq.
"This is an outright violation of the Chemical Weapons Convention and should be pursued legally by the international community," it said.
The IPPNW said it found in northern Iraq material near an area abandoned by the Turkish army including containers for hydrochloric acid and bleach, which could be used to produce chlorine, a chemical warfare agent. At the same site containers were found for gas masks protecting against chemical weapons, it said.
It said none of its evidence was definitive proof of chemical weapons use but it warranted further independent investigation.
