Back in September 2011, the Washington Post published a story on a WikiLeaks document that showed the US helped provide Turkey with intelligence against the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK).
The reveal didn't go over well with US State Department officials. A Vice News FOIA request showed an email forwarded to Hillary Clinton, former secretary of state and now presidential candidate, that revealed the department tried to stifle the article before publication.
"Despite our efforts, WaPo will proceed with its story on US-Turkey intel cooperation against PKK," the message said, according to Vice News. "They will not make redactions we requested so expect the WikiLeaks cables to be published in full."
The collaboration between the US and Turkey shouldn't come as too much of a surprise. They are close allies and the PKK is listed as a terrorist organization in both countries.
The extent of the collaboration might be. In the WikiLeaks document, PKK leader Murat Karayilan said the US provided Turkey with a "special assassination aircraft" that the group considered direct American involvement in the conflict.
"Currently, Turkey does not have such capability. Since the US will provide these aircraft for the massacre to be carried out by those planes, not Turkey but the US will be responsible."
In an interview with PKK-owned Firat News Agency, Karayilan said:
"If the US genuinely wants to develop a solution to problems in the region and if it is looking for stability in the Middle East, then it should first adopt a straight approach to the Kurdish issue. It is a double standard to regard the southern Kurds as friends and support violence against the freedom cause of the northern Kurds. ... It is not right for the US to support Turkey's violent policy."
Read the full document here.
By Hayat Norimine
