Bahceli criricizes govt over withdrawal from N.Iraq

Speaking to his party's parliamentary group meeting yesterday, opposition Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) leader Devlet Bahceli criticized the surprise withdrawal late last week of the Turkish Army from northern Iraq. "The public is suspicious about these developments," said Bahceli. "There is a serious lack of harmonization between state organs." Calling official explanations following the withdrawal unsatisfactory, Bahceli claimed that the operation was launched with permission from the US. Saying that establishing a secure region in northern Iraq is a must for stopping PKK terrorism, the MHP leader urged both the US and the government to cut off Kurdish leader Massoud Barzani's direct or indirect support to the PKK.