Chaldean–Syriac–Assyrian village of Chalik bombed by Turkey in northern Iraq

CHALIK, Iraq — In the absence of significant international pressure, Turkey continues to bomb the villages of norther Iraq, including many villages inhabited by Chaldean–Syriac–Assyrian people. On Thursday, Turkish occupation forces bombed the village of Chalik located on the Iraqi–Turkish border near the village of Hassana.

Due to the intense bombardment the village was evacuated on Friday. Its residents fled to neighboring villages where they were housed and provided with food.

Since last summer, Turkey has engaged in a cross-border military operation ostensibly targeting the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (Partîya Karkerên Kurdistanê, PKK) which has been in armed conflict with the Turkish state since the 1980s. However, Turkish drone and air strikes have repeatedly targeted areas without a PKK presence, according to locals.

Human Rights Watch has criticized Turkey for the carelessness of its military operation which has killed over a dozen civilians and displaced thousands more.

In December, the bodies of three people from Derluk district missing for more than 10 days were found dead.

A recovery team that went to retrieve the bodies of the missing persons – aged between 55 and 65 years old – contacted local officials in Nohadra and reported they were killed by Turkish artillery.

Since the beginning of 2020, hundreds of Chaldean–Syriac–Assyrian villages in northern Iraq have been subjected to Turkish bombardment and dozens have been evacuated, displacing thousands.