TURKISH MILITARY TRAINS SUNNIS IN IRAQ
10:37 * 16.03.15
Turkish Special Forces are training Sunni forces in Iraq, as well
as Turkmens in Syria, Turkish officials have confirmed, according to
the Hurriyet Daily News.
The training mission was first revealed by Asil Nujaifi, the governor
of Mosul, in an interview with Anadolu Agency on March 15.
“Experts from Turkey are providing military training to our forces
on the bases,” Nujaifi said. “Turkey is assuming a better role on
this issue every day, but whether it will join the Mosul operation
is related to the talks it will have with the coalition forces. It
is very important that Turkey is involved in this operation.”
Turkish officials have confirmed Nujaifi’s remarks. Officials told
daily Hurriyet that special forces, also known as the “Maroon Berets,”
were providing training to Peshmerga forces in Arbil, as well as
mostly Turkmen forces in Mosul and Kirkuk.
The officials also said Turkmen forces were being trained at a location
inside Syria, which they did not want to name due to security concerns.
Last week, the Kurdish Regional Government (KRG) in northern Iraq
announced that at least 16,000 Iraqi troops had been trained over
the past four months to retake Mosul from the Islamic State of Iraq
and the Levant (ISIL) militants.
The training provided by the Turkish military is focused on street
clashes, sabotage and intelligence gathering. The sources declined
to comment on the timing of the training and how many people will
be trained, but said the training mission could soon be expanded to
other parts of Iraq.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress
