JINHA

ŞIRNEX – Turkish soldiers rained gunfire on the small Kurdish vilage of Roboski, Turkey yesterday evening and this morning. One villager has been wounded and four children have been arrested. Soldiers also slaughtered villagers’ mules.

The small village of Roboski, located in Şırnak province, became well-known in 2011, when the Turkish army bombarded the village from a warplane, killing 34 civilians in what the army later claimed was an accident (they claimed to have thought the convoy of vilagers were PKK guerrillas).

Yesterday, after villagers protested the recent high level of military activity in the area, soldiers blockaded the village of Roboski. They opened fire on the village with tear gas and live ammunition. Roboski resident Bedri Encü has been wounded by a tank and four children have been arrested.

This morning, soldiers again cruised through the village, raining gunfire on the houses. Although no villagers were harmed in the attack, soldiers shot and killed five mules. Many villagers rely on mules for their livelihood, as mules are the only way to transport loads in the mountainous terrain. The people of Roboski have few sources of livelihood other than the illegal border trade. Killings of mules by soldiers have escalated in recent months in Roboski, eliciting outrage from animal rights groups, among others.
The children arrested yesterday were kept overnight in the military police station nearby. They are expected to go before a judge today.

(fz/be/gc/cm)