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Terrorist attack in Turkmen town
Emirli CNN Kurdish reporter mislead the
viewers Ibn Bayat Emirli is a calm town located in
the well known Turkmen Bayat region. The population number is about 12000,
which is almost purely Turkmen. Shiite Turkmen constitute the majority in the
region. It is well known that the sectarian hate is almost absent between
Turkmen communities of Bayat region and intermarriage are common. The strong
ethnical tie had further strengthened the relation between the sects in the
region. During the Arabification policy of
Ba’ath regime, Emirli was detached from Kerkuk province at 1976 and annexed
to Being a Turkmen region was
deliberately ignored by the Iraqi governments. The town is built up of a
narrow long road, the shops are located on one side
and the houses on the other side. At 8:30 am, 7.7.2007, a big
body-trapped Truck was exploded in the center of the market, which destroyed
35 houses and shops. This was the heaviest ever bombing attack in the region.
Hundred fifty people were killed, more than 250 were wounded and 15 were
missed. Several of Turkmen towns in this region were recently exposed to
terrorist bombing attacks; Daquq, Yengice and Tuz Khurmatu. The explosion caused a hole of 15
meters in diameter and 4 meters in depth, with complete destruction in a
circle of 100 meter around. The town did not get any support
from the province government during the event. The main source of help
reached from different political groups in the Turkmen district Tuz Khurmatu
and Kerkuk province. The National Guards provided medical help only in the
first day. The injured people were brought to Kerkuk hospital and the
critically wounded are sent to The following factors expose Turkmen
of Iraqi to continuous assaults: -
Long period of marginalization of the Iraqi Turkmen,
particularly after occupation. -
Absence of armed Turkmen forces, while the Iraqi National
Guards are constituted of militant groups and even the Arab tribes are armed. -
Kurdification of police, security and military systems of
Turkmen regions. Note: To give the impression that
there are Kurds in Emirli, the Kurdish reporter of CNN, Hala
Gorani, stressed on the presence of wounded Kurds
in the Emirli explosion. In fact, the region is devoid of the Kurds. |