Kaplan MP: Roboski massacre was planned in Ankara
Kaplan MP: Roboski massacre was planned in Ankara
Hasip Kaplan, BDP parliamentary group president and deputy for Þýrnak has said that Ankara is behind the massacre in the village of Roboski. On 28 December Turkish warplanes bombed the are near the village killing 35 civilians.
* Various allegations have been put forward concerning the Roboski slaughter. What have you observed in this process as a close follower of the events?
- Our provincial organization and villagers have called me and informed me about the slaughter since the very beginning. RojTv reporters also arrived at the scene immediately and started live broadcast since 3am on 28 December. Considering what happened there that night, it is quite obvious that the slaughter of 35 people was planned and organized earlier. Villagers who use that path every day, are stopped by soldiers. Two separate groups are gathered at the same place and made to wait there for three hours before the bombing by four F-16 warplanes. Thirty five people lost their lives and three managed to survive as they were standing at a distance of 40 meters from the bombed area. Some of these 35 people were slaughtered in the caves where they had hidden themselves, while others were targeted as a group. More than 50 donkeys were also killed by the bombings. The eye witnesses who arrived at the scene first tell that the bodies were burning as a result of the bombs. There were also three people who were wounded during the bombing but died because of the cold afterwards.
* Do you think that the slaughter was planned within the knowledge of the state?
- This event occurred following coordination responsible minister Beþir Atalay’s earlier statement in which he clearly stated that “integrated and coordinated operations will continue”. The facts that villagers were kept waiting there for three hours and that the bombing was ordered following the examination of Heron images in Ankara are obvious evidences of this planned operation. This was an attack which aimed to leave no one alive there.
*What was the purpose of this slaughter?
- In my opinion, the first purpose of the government was to intimidate both the Kurdish people living in Turkey along the border and the Kurdish government in Iraq. The people who live in that region have close relationships with the people across the border, in Zakho and Duhok cities in particular. They have been leading a life together for thousands of years. Besides, the relatives of these villagers in Zakho city are positioned as senior officials in Barzani’s government. The government on one side gave Kurds the message that “they would shot everyone dead”, while it on the other side send a message to the Kurdish government in Northern Iraq saying that “we killed you relatives as you didn’t pave us the way for an operation in Kandil”.
* Various allegations have been put forward concerning the Roboski slaughter. What have you observed in this process as a close follower of the events?
- Our provincial organization and villagers have called me and informed me about the slaughter since the very beginning. RojTv reporters also arrived at the scene immediately and started live broadcast since 3am on 28 December. Considering what happened there that night, it is quite obvious that the slaughter of 35 people was planned and organized earlier. Villagers who use that path every day, are stopped by soldiers. Two separate groups are gathered at the same place and made to wait there for three hours before the bombing by four F-16 warplanes. Thirty five people lost their lives and three managed to survive as they were standing at a distance of 40 meters from the bombed area. Some of these 35 people were slaughtered in the caves where they had hidden themselves, while others were targeted as a group. More than 50 donkeys were also killed by the bombings. The eye witnesses who arrived at the scene first tell that the bodies were burning as a result of the bombs. There were also three people who were wounded during the bombing but died because of the cold afterwards.
* Do you think that the slaughter was planned within the knowledge of the state?
- This event occurred following coordination responsible minister Beþir Atalay’s earlier statement in which he clearly stated that “integrated and coordinated operations will continue”. The facts that villagers were kept waiting there for three hours and that the bombing was ordered following the examination of Heron images in Ankara are obvious evidences of this planned operation. This was an attack which aimed to leave no one alive there.
*What was the purpose of this slaughter?
- In my opinion, the first purpose of the government was to intimidate both the Kurdish people living in Turkey along the border and the Kurdish government in Iraq. The people who live in that region have close relationships with the people across the border, in Zakho and Duhok cities in particular. They have been leading a life together for thousands of years. Besides, the relatives of these villagers in Zakho city are positioned as senior officials in Barzani’s government. The government on one side gave Kurds the message that “they would shot everyone dead”, while it on the other side send a message to the Kurdish government in Northern Iraq saying that “we killed you relatives as you didn’t pave us the way for an operation in Kandil”.
