German politicians called for an international investigation into the reported use of chemical weapons by the Turkish military. The weapons were used against members of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), according to the online edition of the German weekly magazine Der Spiegel.
A Reuters report said that "German experts have confirmed the authenticity of photographs that purport to show PKK fighters killed by chemical weapons."
A German expert on photo forgeries has confirmed the authenticity of the photos, and a forensics report released by the Hamburg University Hospital has backed the initial suspicion, saying that it is highly probable that the eight Kurds died "due to the use of chemical substances."
Reuters stated "The evidence puts increasing pressure on the Turkish government which has long been suspected of using such weapons against Kurdish rebels. German politicians are demanding an investigation."
Reuters added "It would be difficult to exceed the horror shown in the photos, which feature burned, maimed and scorched body parts. The victims are scarcely even recognizable as human beings. Turkish-Kurdish human rights activists believe the people in the photos are eight members of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) underground movement, who are thought to have been killed in September 2009."
According to the Jerusalem Post, "The bodies in the photos were severely deformed and torn to pieces; the photos formed the basis for the forensic report. Hans Baumann, a German expert on the authenticity of photos, confirmed that photos had not been doctored. The 31 photos, according to German media, are so disturbing that news organizations have been reluctant to publish them."
A Chicago blogger, Warner Todd Houston, commented, "Interestingly few European news sources seem very much interested in discussing this story much. Israeli news outlets, though, are covering this story heavily. This is interesting because if Turkey really is using chemical weapons against its internal, political enemies, this fact will cause immeasurable difficulties between the relations of members of the EU and the increasingly Islamized Turkish nation."
Der Spiegel reported: "Turkey has been suspected of using chemical weapons for years, points out Gisela Penteker, a Turkey expert with the international medical organization International Physicians for the Pevention of Nuclear War. 'Local people have said that again and again,' she explained. Finding proof is difficult, however, she said, because bodies were often released so late that it was hardly possible to carry out a thorough autopsy.
Der Spiegel continued: "In Turkey, human rights advocates have long demanded an investigation. The army, however, has refused to comment on the issue. Similarly, the government of Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has been stubbornly silent or tried to portray the accusations of war crimes as 'PKK propaganda.'"
According to the Berlin daily newspaper, Die Tageszeitung, the Turkish Foreign Ministry has rejected the accusations. Turkey is a signatory to the Chemical Weapons Convention, and its armed forces do not possess any biological or chemical weapons, the Ministry reportedly said.
The newspaper also reports that in the meantime it has obtained additional, shocking pictures supposedly autopsy photographs of six other killed Kurds. These images too have now been submitted to the Hamburg-based experts.
Sources:
Weinthal, Benjamin (August 12, 2010). Turks hit PKK with chemical weapons. Jerusalem Post. http://www.jpost.com/International/Article.aspx?id=184612
Asbarez.com Armenian News (August 13, 2010). Turkey accused of using chemical weapons against PKK. http://asbarez.com/84156/turkey-accused-of-using-chemical-weapons-against-pkk/
Huston, Warner Todd (August 14, 2010). Did Turkey bomb Kurds with chemical weapons in 2009? Publius Forum Gateway Pundit. http://www.publiusforum.com/index.php?s=Did+Turkey+Bomb+Kurds
Steinvorth, Daniel and Musharbash, Yassin (August 12, 2010). Turkey accused of using chemical weapons against PKK. Der Spiegel. http://www.spiegel.de/international/world/0,1518,711536,00.html
