Vivian Salama at PostGlobal

Vivian Salama

USA/Middle East

Vivian Salama is an award winning reporter, producer and blogger. Currently based in Lahore, Pakistan, she has reported for various publications from across the Middle East, Sub-Saharan Africa, the Balkans, the United States and North and South Korea. She has also appeared as a commentator on the BBC, France24, South African Broadcasting Corp., TVNZ, NPR and as a reporter for Voice of America radio. Her byline has appeared in numerous publications including Newsweek, USA Today, the International Herald Tribune, the National, Jerusalem Post, and the Daily Star. Salama has an MA in Islamic Politics from Columbia University and she previously worked as a lecturer of international journalism at Rutgers University. Close.

Vivian Salama

USA/Middle East

Vivian Salama is an award-winning reporter, producer and blogger. Currently based in Lahore, Pakistan, she has reported for various publications from across the Middle East, Sub-Saharan Africa, the Balkans, the United States and North and South Korea. more »

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January 7, 2008 4:16 PM

Kurdish Minister Says Turkey’s Attacks Are Self-Defeating

The Turkish military has stepped up attacks against Kurdish rebels hiding in the mountains of Northern Iraq. Warplanes have carried out a number of cross-border raids to target the thousands of militants whom the military suspects are taking shelter in the predominantly Kurdish part of Iraq. In response to the bombings’ displacement of numerous Kurdish Iraqi families, Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki has ordered the government to pay one million dinars (approximately US$ 815).

The strikes followed an agreement between the United States and Turkey to share intelligence on the activities of the Kurdish Workers Party (PKK), which was labeled a terrorist organization by both Turkey and the United States. The semi-autonomous Kurdish Regional Government (KRG) – an important U.S. ally – has lobbied in Washington and Ankara against a military incursion. The escalating situation in Northern Iraq is expected to dominate the agenda when President George W. Bush hosts Turkey's President Abdullah Gul at the White House on Jan. 8.

Kurdish officials condemn Turkey’s attacks, saying they have done little to quell PKK activities and have only delayed a viable solution. Meanwhile, a PKK leader in Northern Iraq has vowed to take his people's battle for autonomy deep within Turkey’s borders.

Falah Mustafa Bakir, the Minister of Foreign Affairs for the KRG, says the attacks are a violation of Iraqi sovereignty. He spoke to Vivian Salama from Irbil on December 31st.

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