IV 

110TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. RES. 796 

Condemning the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) for its ongoing terrorist 

attacks against Turkey and the Turkish people. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

NOVEMBER 5, 2007 

Mr. WEXLER (for himself, Mr. HASTINGS of Florida, and Mr. WHITFIELD) 

submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee 

on Foreign Affairs 

RESOLUTION 

Condemning the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) for its 

ongoing terrorist attacks against Turkey and the Turkish 

people. 

Whereas the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) was founded 

by Abdullah Ocalan in 1974 as a Marxist-Leninist separatist organization aspiring to establish an independent 

Kurdish state in southeastern Turkey; 

Whereas in 1984, the PKK launched a campaign of violence 

against Turkey that has resulted in more than 37,000 

deaths in the past 23 years; 

Whereas the primary targets of the PKK have been, according to the Department of State’s Country Reports on 

Terrorism 2006, ‘‘Turkish government security forces, 


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local Turkish officials and villagers who oppose the organization in Turkey’’; 

Whereas in 1993 and 1995, the PKK perpetrated attacks on 

Turkish diplomatic and commercial facilities in numerous 

Western European cities; 

Whereas in 1999, PKK leader Abdullah Ocalan was captured 

by Turkish authorities in Kenya with the assistance of 

the United States, and transferred to Turkey for imprisonment and a trial; 

Whereas in 1999, Abdullah Ocalan declared a ‘‘peace initiative’’ and ordered his followers to refrain from violence 

against Turkey and advocated for dialogue with the 

Turkish government on issues pertaining to the Kurdish 

community; 

Whereas the PKK foreswore violence from 1999 until June 

2004, when, according to the Department of State’s 

Country Reports on Terrorism 2006, ‘‘. . . [the] hard-line 

militant wing took control and renounced the self-imposed cease-fire of the previous five years. Striking over 

the border from bases within Iraq, the PKK also known 

as Kurdistan Society Congress (Kongra-Gel or KGK), engaged in terrorist attacks in eastern and western Turkey.’’; 

Whereas in October 1997, the Secretary of State designated 

the PKK as a foreign terrorist organization pursuant to 

section 219 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 

U.S.C. 1189); 

Whereas in October 1999, October 2001, and January 2004, 

the Secretary of State redesignated the PKK as a foreign 

terrorist organization pursuant to section 219 of the Immigration and Nationality Act, and designated as foreign 


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terrorist organizations the following affiliated organizations under the auspices of the PKK: the Kurdistan People’s Congress (KHK), the People’s Congress of 

Kurdistan, the Kurdistan Society Congress (Kongra-Gel 

or KGK), the Freedom and Democracy Congress of 

Kurdistan, and Kurdistan Freedom and Democracy Congress (KADEK); 

Whereas in April 2004, the European Union (EU) designated 

the KGK as a terrorist organization; 

Whereas Turkish authorities have confirmed or suspect that 

the PKK is responsible for dozens of terrorist attacks 

since 2004 that have primarily targeted Turkish military 

officials and foreign tourists in western Turkey; 

Whereas terrorist attacks perpetrated by the PKK since 2004 

have killed or injured more than 2,000 Turkish civilians 

and military officials, as well as foreign tourists; 

Whereas the Department of State’s Country Reports on Terrorism 2006 states that the PKK is comprised of approximately 4,000 to 5,000 members, 3,500 of which are 

currently located in northern Iraq; 

Whereas in August 2006, Secretary of State Condoleezza 

Rice appointed General Joseph W. Ralston (USAF, Ret.) 

Special Envoy for Countering the Kurdistan Workers’ 

Party (PKK), responsible for ‘‘coordinating U.S. engagement with the Government of Turkey and the Government of Iraq to eliminate the terrorist threat of the PKK 

and other terrorist groups operating in Northern Iraq 

and across the Turkey-Iraq border’’; 

Whereas the Department of State emphasized in its August 

28, 2006, press statement that the appointment of General Ralston as Special Envoy for Countering the 


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Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) ‘‘. . . underscores the 

commitment of the United States to work with Turkey 

and Iraq to eliminate terrorism in all its forms’’; 

Whereas a Congressional letter was sent to President George 

W. Bush on October 6, 2006, urging him to deter PKK 

terrorism emanating from Northern Iraq; 

Whereas on March 15, 2007, General Ralston stated before 

the House Foreign Affairs Committee, Subcommittee on 

Europe, ‘‘The continued ability of this terrorist group to 

operate from Iraqi territory is a threat to regional security and an impediment to improvements in the lives of 

people on both sides of the border.’’; 

Whereas on Friday, November 2, 2007, Secretary of State 

Condoleezza Rice in a joint press conference with Turkish 

Foreign Minister Ali Babacan stated ‘‘We consider this 

(the PKK) a common threat, not just to the interests of 

Turkey but to the interests of the United States as well. 

This is going to take persistence and it’s going to take 

commitment—this is a very difficult problem.’’; and 

Whereas the United States and the Republic of Turkey share 

a longstanding partnership strengthened by their commitment to democracy, military alliance in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), and close cooperation 

in the war on terror: Now, therefore, be it 

1 Resolved, That the House of Representatives— 

2 (1) reaffirms its steadfast support for United 

3 States-Turkish relations; 

4 (2) condemns, in the strongest terms, the un5 conscionable terrorist attacks by the Kurdistan 

6 Workers’ Party (PKK) against the Turkish people; 


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1 (3) reaffirms the support of the United States 

2 for Turkey’s right to self-defense; 

3 (4) urges President Bush to appoint a new 

4 United States Special Envoy for Countering the 

5 Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK); 

6 (5) urges the Bush Administration to take di7 rect, concrete and immediate action to prevent the 

8 PKK from using bases in northern Iraq to carry out 

9 attacks against the people and Government of Tur10 key; 

11 (6) calls on the United Nations Security Coun12 cil to condemn the horrific terrorist acts perpetrated 

13 by the PKK; 

14 (7) urges the national Government of Iraq to 

15 take concrete steps to remove the PKK from Iraqi 

16 territory; 

17 (8) calls on Kurdish regional government in 

18 northern Iraq to take concrete, definitive and imme19 diate action against the PKK by closing down PKK 

20 military bases in the Qandil mountains in northern 

21 Iraq and prevent further cross border attacks from 

22 northern Iraq into Turkey; and 

23 (9) urges the Secretary of State to designate 

24 the Kurdish Freedom Hawks (TAK) as an organiza25 tion affiliated with the PKK on the list of foreign 


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1 terrorist organizations pursuant to section 219 of 

2 the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 

3 1189). 

Æ 


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