Iraq seeks UN Security Council session over presence of Turkish troops

Baghdad: Iraq has requested an emergency UN Security Council session over the presence of Turkish troops in northern Iraq, a Foreign Ministry spokesman said Thursday, a development that could further increase tension between the two neighbors. Turkey-Iraq relations became strained after Ankara late last year sent troops to the region of Bashiqa, northeast of Mosul, to train anti-Islamic State fighters there — a move Baghdad considers a “blatant violation” of its sovereignty. Iraq has demanded Turkish withdrawal but Ankara has ignored the call. Baghdad is now asking the Security Council for the emergency session to discuss “Turkish violations on the Iraqi soil and the interference in its internal affairs,” said the ministry spokesman, Ahmad Jamal. [caption id=“attachment_3033452” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  File photo of the UNSC.. AFP[/caption] Jamal said Iraq also asked the council to “shoulder its responsibility and adopt a resolution to end to the Turkish troops’ violation of Iraq’s sovereignty” and “intensify international support” ahead a major Iraqi military operation to take back Mosul from Islamic State militants. Earlier this week, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan expressed Ankara’s willingness to join the imminent battle for Mosul. Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim later warned that the operation could spark Shiite-Sunni sectarian tensions if the majority Sunni region around Mosul were to be placed under Shiite militia control after the offensive. Meanwhile, Iraq’s parliament adopted a resolution denouncing the extension of Turkish troops’ presence, asking the government to consider them as “occupation forces.” Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi said Ankara’s insistence on maintaining troops in Iraq could lead to “regional warfare.” Mosul, Iraq’s second-largest city, is the Islamic State group’s last remaining urban stronghold in Iraq. The government is now gearing up for the Mosul offensive and has pledged to recapture the city from IS this year.