The PKK does not have a presence in the villages which are being evacuated, and the Turkish strategy of displacing Kurds and building military outposts on their land would meet the United Nations standard for the war crime of ethnic cleansing: “ a purposeful policy designed by one ethnic or religious group to remove by violent and terror-inspiring means the civilian population of another ethnic or religious group from certain geographic areas.” The PKK has not used their bases in Iraqi Kurdistan to launch attacks on Turkey since then, but Erdogan and his cabinet remain convinced that the PKK is a threat to Turkey, using their concern as a pre-text to justify a de-facto invasion of Iraqi Kurdistan. The government of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan claims that the offense is an “anti-terror” operation against the Kurdish PKK militia, which moved into Iraqi Kurdistan to fight the ISIS caliphate in 2014, and has remained in the rugged mountains near the Turkish border ever since. Many residents fear that their homes may be demolished in the construction of new Turkish military bases and outposts. The majority of those affected depend on agricultural production for their livelihoods, which are being heavily impacted by the Turkish campaign. Hundreds of people have been displaced elsewhere in Duhok Province since the campaign began, near areas where FAI field teams operate medical clinics and other important ministries. The area around the village of Edine was evacuated after a nearby bombardment on Tuesday, following attacks on the villages of Deshish, Kesta and Chalke last week. Two Kurdish shepherds were also wounded by Turkish artillery fire in the vicinity of Zakho on Wednesday. Residents of the village were “terrified” as they fled from their homes, making Miska the fourth such village near the Turkish border to be evacuated during operations Claw-Lightning and Claw-Thunderbolt. The Turkish military continued its attacks on villages in the Kurdistan province of Duhok on Wednesday, conducting airstrikes within 100 meters of the Assyrian Christian village of Miska.

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