Letter: Let Britain defend the Kurds- not turn a blind eye to killing

From Mr Alan Brooke

Sir: The offensive against the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) bases is part of an attempt to crush the resistance of the Kurds, which last week spilled over into demonstrations in major cities in western Turkey. The Western governments, by their willingness to persecute the PKK, have shown that they accept Turkey's claim that it is waging a war against "terrorism". In the UK the European spokesman of the PKK, Kani Yilmaz, although convicted of no crime, has been detained in Belmarsh jail since October in virtual solitary confinement.

In their eagerness to welcome Turkey into the EU and bolster up an economically crippled Nato ally, the Western governments again turn a blind eye to the massacre of Kurds. Turkey is attempting a "final solution" to its Kurdish "problem". If it succeeds it will be thanks to the collaboration of the EU and Nato countries.

Yours sincerely,

ALAN BROOKE

Huddersfield

21 March