ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Locals of a village in Zakho’s Batifa town returned to their homes this week after evacuating and settling elsewhere four years ago because of constant heavy Turkish bombardment.
Turkey has carried out numerous operations in the area, claiming to be targeting the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK).
The fighting has forced many locals of villages near the Kurdistan Region’s border with Turkey to leave their homes out of safety concerns.
Upon return, many residents found their houses and belongings had been destroyed. They claim that the village still remains unsafe, and can only be approached from a distance of at least eight kilometers.
“At first, when the Turkish soldiers came, all the villagers left the village and we said we would return in a few days, then we were banned from entering the village until six or seven days ago,” Islam Sadiq, a resident, told Rudaw’s Ayub Nasri on Sunday.
Akram Aziz, another resident, told Rudaw that “A road has been built through the village and destroyed all the land of the farmers. The road was built by the Turkish army to reach a military checkpoint and destroyed the fields of some farmers.”
Thirteen villages have been evacuated in Batifa town due to the fighting between Turkey and the PKK.
Farhad Mahmood, the governor of Batifa town, told Rudaw that the situation in the town is calm and no incidents have taken place recently.
The PKK is a Kurdish armed group fighting for the increased rights of Kurds in Turkey and designated a terrorist organization by Ankara. Turkish forces regularly pursue the PKK, as well as individuals believed to be affiliated with the group through the use of drones, airstrikes, and targeted assassinations within the Kurdistan Region’s borders where the group has its headquarters.