Egypt’s Minister of Foreign Affairs demanded the “immediate and unconditional withdrawal” of Turkish troops from Iraq, describing the presence of Turkish troops as a violation of Iraq’s sovereignty.
“Arab territories are subjected to daily violations, and Arab countries must confront those incursions because history will hold us accountable,” Egypt’s Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry said during an emergency Arab League meeting held in Cairo.
The Egyptian Foreign Minister expressed opposition to foreign intervention in countries’ internal affairs without permission and added that Turkey’s presence in Iraq violates international law.
In addition, the Foreign Minister said that confronting terrorism requires strong coordination between Arab countries and that it is important for the Arab world to lead the war on terror.
At the emergency Arab League meeting, foreign ministers of the Arab League denounced Turkey’s military presence in Iraq and called for the withdrawal of its troops.
“We stand as Arab countries along with Iraq and we call on Turkey to immediately withdraw its military forces from Iraq and respect the international border between the two countries,” said Nabil El-Araby, the Secretary General of the Arab League.
“We support Iraq’s request and this reflects our great Arab solidarity with them.”
Iraq recently expressed anger at Turkey’s military presence at a base in northern Iraq. Turkey, which deployed around 150 soldiers, said the troops are simply providing training to Kurdish groups fighting ISIS. However, Iraq demanded the immediate withdrawal of such troops, adding that they were not asked for permission prior to deployment.
In response, Turkey withdrew some of its troops but has refused to commit to a full withdrawal of its presence.
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