Erdogan threatens Iraqi Kurds: We could attack suddenly one night

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan threatened an invasion of Iraq after the Kurds voted in a referendum on independence held on Sunday, world media report, Patria agency reports.

Erdogan stated that the "fight against the independence of Iraqi Kurds is a matter of survival and that he could stop the oil pipeline from Iraq to increase pressure on the autonomous Kurdish region“.

78 percent of voters turned out for the referendum, and Baghdad announced that it does not recognize it and sees it as an attempt by the Kurds to control as much of the state's oil reserves as possible.

Erdogan said the "separatist" referendum is unacceptable to Turkey.

He emphasized that the Turkish army is conducting exercises along the border with the Iraqi Kurdish region and threatened possible intervention.

- Our army is not there for no reason. We could attack suddenly one night – Erdogan said.

The Turkish army announced that Iraqi soldiers joined them in exercises on Monday evening. The Iraqi Ministry of Defense stated that the armies began conducting "huge maneuvers" in the border area.  

The Turkish army has been carrying out airstrikes against the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) for several days, and the third phase of the military exercise will be held today. The state has warned citizens in Iraqi Kurdish provinces to leave as soon as possible.

About 30 million Kurds have been displaced in several world countries since the collapse of the Ottoman Empire. The PKK began a separatist rebellion in 1984, since when more than 40,000 people have been killed.

Turkey, the US, and the EU have designated the PKK as a terrorist organization.