Turkey authorises Iraq incursion

cross-border attacks on Kurdish rebels

The Turkish parliament on Wednesday overwhelmingly authorised cross-border military attacks in northern Iraq against Kurdish separatist rebels, as world leaders pleaded for restraint.

Lawmakers voted 507 to 19 to give Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan permission to order strategic strikes or large-scale invasions of Iraq for a one-year period. Erdogan has said he will not order an immediate attack.

Throughout 2 1/2 hours of debate, legislators expressed frustration that the United States and Iraq have not kept promises to curb the activities of the Kurdistan Workers8217; Party, known as the PKK, which the United States and European Union have classified as a terrorist organisation.

As the votes were tallied in Turkey8217;s modernistic legislative chamber here, President Bush told reporters at a White House news conference that 8220;we are making it very clear to Turkey that we don8217;t think it is in their interest to send troops into Iraq.8221; In the hours leading up to the vote, Turkish leaders were besieged with last-minute telephone calls from across the globe, imploring against military action on grounds that it could inflame the only relatively stable region of Iraq.

Iraqi PM Nouri al-Maliki telephoned Erdogan, asking for more time to take action against PKK rebels who have largely been allowed to operate freely in northern Iraq since the US-led invasion in 2003. He said he has given 8220;strict instructions8221; to the regional Kurdish administration in Iraq8217;s north to crack down on PKK operations and said Iraqi forces could join the Turkish army in military operations 8220;if necessary8221;, according to the Anatolian news agency. Erdogan8217;s office denied there was an offer of joint military action.