SULAIMANI (ESTA) — The Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) opened fire at a unit of Peshmerga forces on Mount Matin on Saturday, a senior official said.
Peshmerga’s Chief of Staff Jamal Emniki said the PKK fighters had opened fire at the Peshmerga forces who went to carry out their duty.
The incident took place in Charchle area on Mount Matin at 08:30 a.m. on Saturday, he told Esta Media Network.
“The Peshmerga forces responded to the attack,” he said, noting that there were no casualties among the Peshmerga.
“The PKK tries to create chaos and war. It will be responsible for any unwanted incident, because the Peshmerga forces see the protection of all areas in the Kurdistan Region as their duty,” he added.
The incident came after a convoy of Peshmerga forces came under an attack on the mountain in June.
Five Peshmerga were killed and seven others were injured in the attack, which Kurdish officials blamed on the PKK.
The convoy was hit either by a rocket or an improvised explosive device (IED) as it was heading toward a point on the mountain.
The ministry of Peshmerga said the PKK fighters “ambushed” a unit of the Peshmerga forces on Mount Matin in Amedi district, northeast of Duhok.
The PKK denied the accusations and called for investigations into the attack.
The People’s Defense Forces (HPG) said its fighters had fired into the air to warn the Kurdish forces but they had not used the weapon to destroy their vehicle.
“It is true that our forces had fired some bullets as warning, but certainly the weapon which destroyed the vehicle was not used by our forces,” the HPG said.
