Iraq has requested an emergency meeting of the United Nations Security Council to discuss the presence of Turkish troops on its territory as a dispute with Ankara escalates. Turkey's parliament voted last week to extend the deployment of an estimated 2,000 troops across northern Iraq by a year to combat 'terrorist organizations' - a likely reference to Kurdish rebels as well as Islamic State. Iraq condemned the vote, and Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi warned Turkey risked triggering a regional war. On Wednesday, Ankara and Baghdad each summoned the other's ambassador in protest at remarks from the other camp. 'The Iraqi foreign ministry has presented a request for an emergency meeting of the Security Council to discuss the Turkish violation of Iraq's territory and interference in its internal affairs,' said a statement on the ministry's website.
(photo credit: The Jerusalem Post)