"We do not think that the Peshmerga were killed by the PKK because the PKK does not believe in a Kurdish-Kurdish war," Kofan Kaneo told KurdPress about recent attack on Peshmerga which killed at least 5 members of the troop.
Seven Peshmerga were also wounded when an explosion destroyed their vehicle near Matin Mountain.
"The Kurdish enemies always want the Kurds to be killed by the Kurds, and in this regard, they back a group of them against another one," said Kofan Kaneo, the leader of the Syrian Kurdistan Democratic Party.
He continued as saying that: "In the situation that a hundred years have passed since the Lausanne Treaty and the region is pregnant with great events, it is necessary for the Kurds to move towards unity more than before and to distance themselves from conflict."
Mr. Kaneo went on to note that: "Turkey is always the enemy of the Kurds and uses every means to make the Kurdish-Kurdish war happen, and in the recent incident, the reality turned out better."
"We do not think the Peshmerga have been killed by the PKK because the PKK does not believe in a Kurdish-Kurdish war and is a Kurdish force," he said.
The party leader reminded: "It is necessary for the two sides to distance themselves from any armed conflict or media tentions and discuss issues and problems between them as soon as possible."
The party leader noted: "Turkey has entered both the territory of Iraqi Kurdistan and the that of Syrian Kurdistan. In such a situation, the Kurds should not engage in divisive issues, and they should use every measure to confront the aggressors, and respond to these actions of Turkey, both through international institutions and through the Iraqi government."
Meanwhile a spokesperson for the armed wing of the PKK on Saturday, June 5, denied claims by Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) officials that the group’s fighters ambushed and killed five Peshmerga in Duhok governorate.
People's Defence Forces (HPG) Spokesperson Sarko Yaktash said the HPG (armed wing of the PKK) did not know for certain how it happened.
In statements, KRG officials put the blame squarely on the PKK.
Yaktash said that when the Peshmerga were entering an HPG-controlled area, the guerrilla forces fired into the air as a warning, but the Peshmerga continued to move forward. Suddenly, an explosion occurred, destroying the vehicle, NRT quoted the spokesman as saying.
One explanation he offered was that the Peshmerga vehicle hit a landmine left over from the Ba’athist era.
Another was that the explosion was the result of a Turkish airstrike designed to incite fighting between the Peshmerga and the PKK.
The area around Matin Mountain, which is north of Amedi, has been the scene of heavy fighting between the Turkish military and the PKK over the past year. In late April, Turkey launched “Operation Claw Lightning,” renewing its offensive against the group.
No civilians have been killed since the beginning of “Operation Claw Lightning,” but at least four have been wounded in airstrikes and approximately 1,500 villagers have been displaced.
“It is true that we have drones, but it is clear that we never want to use any weapon or plane against Kurds and the PKK [fighters] will never attack [their] brothers," Yaktash said.
“We only have one enemy which is the invading Turkish state.”
He called on the Peshmerga forces to withdraw from areas with PKK presence in order to prevent the recurrence of such incidents.
“Those who desire, let them fight with us against invaders. For those who do not, let them not create obstacles for us and stab us in the back,” Yaktash said.
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