'PKK must get out of our villages'

Ihsan Çelebi, said that 100 villages of the Sidekan district in south Iraqi Kurdistan are in the PKK blockade, stated that the villagers were under great pressure and people were prevented from entering and leaving their villages.

Ihsan Çelebi, one of the administrators of the Sidekan province in the south of Iraqi Kurdistan, has been evaluating PKK's involvement in the Peshmerga harassment in the village of Khanesor in the Sinun district of Sinjar, and the events after it, said that the PKK had major problems in its own region.

“We want the PKK to get out from the villagers in the south of Kurdistan”

Çelebi said, "There are approximately 257 villages in Sidekan. About 100 of these villages cannot be reconstructed because the PKK's armed militants are barred from entering the villages and are getting tax and customs fees when they allow them to enter the villages. 'We want them to get out of the villages in the south of the Kurdistan,' said Çelebi.

"Our people are afraid to return to their villages because they are hurt"

Kadir Heci, one of the village-dwellers of Sidekan who stated that the presence of PKK in the region neglected the daily life of people, “The return of the people to the villages was blocked by PKK every day and prevented us from returning to our homes. Because of the presence of PKK here, our villages become targets by Turkish war crafts. Our people are afraid to return to their villages because they are hurt. PKK must get out of our villages. We want to return to our villages.”

“We are away from our villages for 20 years”

Another peasant named Reşad Ömer, who stated that they suffer by the PKK's presence in the region, said, “We are away from our villages for 20 years due to the presence of PKK and bombardments. If the PKK leaves this place and if the Kurdistan Government builds up, we will return to our villages again, and will start our farming.” (ILKHA)