ABSTRACT
T HE TURKISH authorities have been engaged in a fierce struggle against insurgents ofthe PKK (Kurdistan Workers' Party) in south-eastern Turkey. Villages have been evacuated or destroyed as innocent Kurdish civilians are caught in the cross-fire between the assaults of the PKK and the Turlush security forces. Sporadic acts of terrorism have targeted urban centres and tourist sites in other parts of the country. The PKK has been able to operate out of bases located in neighbouring Iran and Iraq where large Kurdish communities also live. Seeking to destroy the PKK's network ofbases in Iraq in March 1995, the Turlsh armed forces launched the largest assault hitherto against the Kurdish insurgents in northern Iraq. This was followed up a few months later by a smaller scale Turlush operation in northern Iraq. The PKK's declaration of a unilateral ceasefire in December 1995 had little impact on the course of events.
