KURDISH guerillas said today that Turkey was “playing its last card” in its invasion of Iraqi Kurdistan as its forces face fierce resistance.

“The enemy cannot move freely in the areas he occupies,” guerilla Aliser said of the Turkish troops, thousands of whom are engaged in a military offensive in the mountainous border region of Duhok.

Kurdish resistance fighters are carrying out frequent attacks to prevent the soldiers from advancing.

“So far, the Turkish state has not achieved its goals and has even been repelled. The Turkish government is playing its last card here by trying to prolong their lives through war,” he told the ANF news agency.

Turkey launched Operation Claw Lightning in April, as part of a military offensive that it claims is targeting the banned Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK).

But its forces has been accused of a litany of war crimes, including the use of chemical weapons, driving thousands of Kurdish villagers from their homes and damaging agricultural land through incessant bombing.

Turkish missiles struck the United Nations-administered Makhmour refugee camp last month and four health workers were killed in an air strike on a hospital in the Yazidi part of the Shengal district.

Kurdish officials have written to world bodies, including the UN and the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, asking them to investigate but have received no response.

Battle continues to rage five months after the Turkish operation began, with its forces said to be “shocked” by the resistance of the PKK fighters.

“The guerillas know no obstacle even under the most difficult conditions. Women play a crucial role in guerilla warfare,” guerilla Arin said.

“The Turkish state fears the strength of women and therefore targets them. But the attacks by the Turkish state will not go unanswered.

“The strength of the guerilla fighters became evident in this war …We are determined and will defeat the enemy here on this land,” she added.