The Democratic People’s Council of Makhmour (Mexmûr) Refugee Camp have made a statement relating to the latest attacks by and threats towards their camp from Turkey.

Ali Ürek, co-chair of the Council, stated that refugees of Makhmour camp wish to make their situation and their wishes known to the Government of Iraq, the Federal Office for Migration and Refugees, the United Nations and the public in general.

“The people of this camp have not left our lands because of poverty. We became refugees because we could not accept the injustice we were experiencing,” he said.

Ürek stated that they faced great difficulties and were paying a high price by reason of the actions and aggression of Turkey.

“We have become refugees and living as refugees in Makhmour Camp for 28 years because of policies disregarding our legitimate rights. We did not become refugees voluntarily, we want to live with our own identities and our own language on our own land, just like everyone else. We just wanted to live peaceful and tranquil lives,” he said.

Ürek remarked that there had been attempts at genocide and massacres at Makhmour camp: “We, the people of Makhmour want to make this clear to the offices and powers responsible for our lives, and we want you to understand us: Turkey wants to continue today the genocide and massacres it perpetrated against us 28 years ago. As a result they use any excuse to make us targets and attack us. They want to break our evironment of peace and security.”

Recalling that Makhmour is a camp where civilians live, Ürek said: “A large proportion of the population in the camp is made up of children, women and the elderly. The AKP-MHP [Justice and Development Party and Nationalist Movement Party] government in Turkey is a fascist regime. This force is destroying the stability of the region and they accept Kurdish people as hostile whereever they may be. We are against this regime, because this fascist state commits genocide against the Kurdish people every day, and they want to do it today too.”

Ürek stated that the residents of Makhmour camp are calling out to the people of the world, and continued: “We call upon the United Nations, the Federal Office for Migration and Refugees, the central government of Iraq and human rights organisations to respond to these attacks against us and protect the camp from attack. In other words, fulfill your responsibilities.”