On Dec. 28, early in the morning, a large group of civilians were about to enter Turkey from the Iraqi border, with their mules carrying diesel oil and cigarettes, when they were attacked by fighters. Hüseyin Çelik, deputy chairman of the ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party), said those killed in the airstrike were cigarette smugglers, not militants with the PKK. He said the attack was launched in line with information collected by surveillance drones that indicated Kurdish militant activity in the area.
This sad, tragic incident has left many questions unanswered, including the Taraf daily's allegation that the 35 civilians were killed because of incorrect intelligence provided by the National Intelligence Organization (MİT).
Fuel, cigarette and sugar smuggling is a routine business in the poor and restive mainly Kurdish Southeast. Local authorities as well as the security forces are well informed about this long-time activity.
How, then, is it that Turkish F-16s could mistakenly bomb these civilians?
At the moment there is no evidence to indicate they may have been killed purposefully on suspicion that they were in fact helping to finance the PKK through smuggling.
In addition, there is speculation that the fighters may have attacked the civilians to undermine a shift in Turkish security policy, under which the military has been conducting the fight in cooperation with specially trained police forces and under the full guidance of the civilian government. Until recently, the fight against the PKK was under policy made by the hands of the military alone.
It is no secret that there are a large number of officers of various ranks who are not friendly with the AK Party, which has already initiated several reforms to bring the politically meddlesome Turkish Armed Forces (TSK) under civilian control. These reforms have been annoying the TSK with a fear they are losing their privileged status.
There are over 200 active duty and retired officers, including generals, who are in jail facing charges of making coup plans to unseat the government. The military's reputation was dealt a blow by these ongoing trials.
Some of the indictments subject to confirmation during the ongoing court hearings have established links between the PKK and the alleged coup plotters in jail, with the aim of prolonging an almost 30-year fight against this organization, regarded as a terrorist group by Turkey, the US and the European Union.
The case against the coup plan code-named Sledgehammer, for example, includes allegations of provoking sectarian or ethnic violence among Turks, Kurds, Alevis and Sunnis.
Security mistakes, allegedly committed during the fight against the PKK by Turkish commanders who had never faced an inquiry until recently, are also blamed for the prolongation of the fight with the PKK.
Several incidents that have been disclosed by the media in recent years and which were later confirmed have displayed serious security flaws that have existed in the military's fight against the PKK. However, it has been only recently that the responsibility of commanders in deadly PKK attacks has begun to be investigated.
Nevertheless, military attacks on civilians and the killing of 35 cannot be justified under any circumstances.
A detailed, serious investigation to be conducted by civilian prosecutors, provided that there will be no pressure exerted upon them with the aim of hiding the truth, may, perhaps, help to prevent a further deterioration of the already fragile relationship between Turkey's Kurds and Turks.
The Diyarbakır Specially Authorized Prosecutor's Office has already launched an investigation into the deaths of the 35 people. However, serious damage has already been done with this latest incident that will harden hopes for the resumption of efforts to find a peaceful solution to the Kurdish question.
The military strike comes at a time when the military conflict with the PKK has seen a rise, as peace talks initiated by the Turkish state with the PKK have already broken down.
If the government does not want to play into the hands of those both from the PKK and from the still-active illegal elements of the state, it should lend its utmost support to the prosecutors so that they can unearth the truth.
In the meantime, the government has made a big mistake by not removing from their posts those commanders, as well as ministers, dealing with security issues following the deadly attack that killed civilians. By doing so, the government would have had shown the public and, in particular, the Kurds that negligence will not be forgiven.
