Kurds between a rock and a hard place - a weekly news review

-On Sunday night, the northern mountains of the Kurdistan Region of Iraq came under heavy bombardment from Turkish warplanes and howitzers, and Turkish helicopters ferried in soldiers as Turkey launched its anticipated attack on the PKK’s guerrilla bases. But it is not only the guerrillas in their mountain tunnels that are under attack. The Kurds and the Kurdish freedom movement are under attack across all parts of Kurdistan. And although Turkey is their biggest enemy, it is not their only enemy in what has become a complex battleground of competing powers.