ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Turkey on Thursday denied targeting civilians in the Kurdistan Region’s Duhok province following a deadly bombardment attributed to Ankara, saying the accusations are made to disrupt Turkey’s fight against “terrorism.”

Nine civilians, including children, and at least 23 others were injured in an artillery fire that struck a tourist resort in Duhok’s Zakho district on Wednesday afternoon, drawing criticism from both the Iraqi government and the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG).

Erbil and Baghdad blamed Turkey for the offense, but the allegations have been denied by Ankara.

Speaking to state-owned TRT Haber, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said there have been no attacks on civilians according to information they have received from the Turkish armed forces.

“The whole world knows that Turkey has never carried out an attack on civilians,” Cavusoglu said. “Our target has always been the PKK [Kurdistan Workers’ Party] or the YPG [People’s Protection Units]/PYD [Democratic Union Party] terrorist organizations in Syria.”

Cavusoglu blamed the attack on “terrorist organizations” likely referring to the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), which is a Kurdish armed group that Ankara designated as a terrorist organization.

The Turkish embassy in Iraq on Thursday claimed that the victims of the attack were killed at the hands of PKK.

The armed wing of the PKK, the People’s Defense Forces (HPG), blamed Ankara for the deadly offense late Wednesday while denying the presence of PKK-affiliates at the attack site.

Dozens of protestors gathered in front of the Turkish embassy in Baghdad on Thursday morning, asking for the expulsion of the Turkish ambassador to the country, and criticizing the Iraqi government’s “pitiful” position.

“The government must first declare that the Turkish ambassador is not welcomed in Iraq,” one of the protestors told Rudaw’s Halkawt Aziz, also demanding the expulsion of the PKK from the country.

Cavusoglu addressed the protests, stating that Iraqi authorities have taken the necessary measures to protect the Turkish embassy from being stormed.

Zakho’s bombardment also drew reactions from the international communities, receiving condemnations from the United States, United Kingdom, United Nations, and others.

Iran on Thursday also condemned the attack without mentioning Turkey.

Baghdad on Wednesday demanded an official apology from Turkey along with “the withdrawal of its armed forces from all Iraqi territory.”

Turkey often carries out attacks against the PKK and other Kurdish armed groups in Syria and the Kurdistan Region, whom it sees as threats to its national security.

In April it launched Operation Claw-Lock in Duhok, saying it was targeting PKK hideouts in Duhok province’s mountainous areas.

However, Iraq Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein told reporters on Wednesday that Ankara has been “targeting villages and civilians” instead of fighting the PKK. He was dispatched to the area along with security officials by Iraq Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi.[1]