Reşadiye shooting

Reşadiye shooting
Part of the Kurdish–Turkish conflict

Districts of Tokap province
Date7 December 2009
LocationReşadiye, Tokat Province, Turkey
Result PKK tactical victory
Belligerents
 Turkey Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK)
Commanders and leaders
Turkey Harun Aslanbaş † Celal Başkale[1]
Strength
15 7[1]
Casualties and losses
7 killed, 3 injured[2] none reported

The Reşadiye shooting was an ambush that took place on December 7, 2009, at Reşadiye, Tokat Province, Turkey. Unidentified gunmen ambushed a Turkish patrol, killing seven soldiers and wounding three others. It was the region's deadliest attack in more than a decade, since the Sazak assault in 1997;[3][4] and last recent attack in Turkey since April, 2009 when a remote-controlled bomb set by Kurdish militants killed 10 soldiers in the country's southeast.[5] The last major attack in Tokat was in 2001.[6]

The ambush occurred as Turkey's Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan was received in Washington, D.C., by U.S. President Barack Obama and occurred the day before a court was due to consider outlawing Turkey's Democratic Society Party (DTP), the largest Kurdish party in the country.[2][7][8][9][10] The threat of parliamentary resignations and a potential election lingered in the air.[11] The Turkish army said on their website that they would maintain a presence in the area.[3]

The attack

The attack occurred as gendarmerie troops embarked on a patrol mission using a military vehicle.[4][12] They were in a mountainous region with thick fog[13] when they were attacked using rocket launchers.[6] Early reports indicated the deaths of five or six soldiers and ten more were wounded.[4][12] It was later confirmed that seven were dead and three were wounded.[2][14] One of the wounded soldiers was officially listed as in critical condition.[14] Six of the dead were privates; the other was a sergeant.[1]

The PKK claimed responsibility on 10 December 2009, according to the Fırat news agency.[1] The Doğan news agency stated that the ambush was carried out by seven individuals led by Celal Başkale, or "Mahir".[1]

Aftermath

The seven dead soldiers were identified as Sgt. Harun Aslanbaş and privates Onur Bozdemir, Kemal Pide, Ferit Demir, Yakup Mutlu, Cengiz Sarıbaş and Fatih Yonca.[15] The funeral of the soldiers the following day attracted hundreds of mourners.[11] Some shouted anti-PKK comments aloud.[11] The dead were later buried in their hometowns.[1] The Association to Serve All Families of Martyrs complained about the Democratic Society Party and how it had been "encouraging people to hate and hostility" and waved flags at an Ankara courthouse.[1]

An investigation by the Reşadiye Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office showed that the local village headman, Hidayet İ, was a secret informant of the PKK and had tipped them off about the soldiers leaving Reşadiye. Hidayet İ turned out to be a double agent, who had been an informant to the Gendarmerie, the PKK and the DHKP-C.[16]

Reaction

Sweden, in its role as President of the European Union, expressed its wish in a statement "that the perpetrators will be brought to justice as soon as possible" and reminded Turkey it had the EU's full support "in the fight against terrorism".[17]

Turkish daily Hürriyet suggested reports from Washington, D.C., indicated "it was obvious the prime minister was shocked with the sad news he received".[2]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "PKK claims responsibility for Tokat assault". Hürriyet. 10 December 2009. Retrieved 10 December 2009.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Yusuf Kanli (8 December 2009). "Between hearts and minds". Hürriyet. Retrieved 8 December 2009.
  3. 1 2 Sebnem Arsu (7 December 2009). "Soldiers Killed in Ambush in Northern Turkey". The New York Times. Retrieved 7 December 2009.
  4. 1 2 3 "Seven Turkish soldiers killed in terrorist attack - Gen. Staff". RIA Novosti. 7 December 2009. Retrieved 7 December 2009.
  5. ↑ "Turkish soldiers killed in attack". BBC NEWS / EUROPE. BBC. 2009-12-09. Retrieved 17 December 2009.
  6. 1 2 "Turkish soldiers killed in ambush". Al Jazeera. 7 December 2009. Retrieved 7 December 2009.
  7. ↑ "Gunmen kill Turkish soldiers in northern Turkey". Radio Netherlands Worldwide. 7 December 2009. Retrieved 7 December 2009.
  8. ↑ "Gunmen kill seven soldiers in northern Turkey". Reuters South Africa. 7 December 2009. Retrieved 7 December 2009.
  9. ↑ "Gunmen kill seven soldiers in Turkey". RTÉ. 7 December 2009. Retrieved 7 December 2009.
  10. ↑ "Seven Turkish soldiers killed". Cape Times. 8 December 2009. Retrieved 8 December 2009.
  11. 1 2 3 Susan Frazer (8 December 2009). "Turkish court ponders fate of Pro-Kurdish party". The Washington Post. Retrieved 8 December 2009.
  12. 1 2 "Five Turkish soldiers killed in armed attack". Xinhua News Agency. 7 December 2009. Retrieved 7 December 2009.
  13. ↑ "Turkish soldiers shot dead in ambush". BBC News. 7 December 2009. Retrieved 7 December 2009.
  14. 1 2 "Number of killed Turkish soldiers rises to seven: statement". Xinhua News Agency. 8 December 2009. Retrieved 8 December 2009.
  15. ↑ Tension high as heinous attack leaves unanswered questions behind
  16. ↑ "TURKEY - Reşadiye attack informer a double agent". Retrieved 11 February 2015.
  17. ↑ "EU condemns terrorist attack in northeastern Turkey". Xinhua News Agency. 9 December 2009. Retrieved 9 December 2009.
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