KURDISH officials accused Western powers of complicity in Turkish air strikes that killed two people and injured many more at the UN-administered Makhmour Refugee Camp in northern Iraq today.

It was heavily bombarded on Tuesday night as missiles also targeted areas in Shengal, where thousands were massacred at the hands of Isis in the 2014 Yazidi Genocide.

The town of Derik in north-east Syria was also struck just hours after 12 Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) fighters who were killed in the recent thwarted Isis prison break in Hasaka province were buried.

“Iraqi air space is controlled by the coalition,” camp officials told the Morning Star. “Turkey cannot make air strikes without their permission.”

“Twelve thousand people live here and we are under the guarantee of the UN. We call on everyone to take care of us.”

Turkey frequently bombs Makhmour camp with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan branding it “an incubator of terrorism,” accusing it of housing fighters from the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK).

The UN rarely speaks out after such incidents and is accused of collusion with Turkey and Nato. 

A 2006 Wikileaks cable appears to support these assertions, with then UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) representative Gesche Karrenbrock working with both US and Turkish officials to shut it down.

The Morning Star contacted the UNHCR today which said it was trying to verify the facts on the ground.

It has issued no public statement on the missile strike.

The latest attacks were branded “revenge for Hasaka” with Turkey known to support jihadist groups in Syria to fight against Kurds as part of a genocide operation.

During last week’s attempted prison break, Ankara launched air strikes at an SDF convoy preventing it from providing reinforcements in the battle against Isis, effectively providing the jihadists with air cover.

Tuesday night’s attacks, which Turkey said hit 80 targets, were condemned by Baghdad as “a violation of Iraqi air space” and of the country’s sovereignty.

Turkish Defence Minister Hulusi Akar said that the operation targeted PKK bases and training camps.

The “terrorists felt the breath of the Turkish armed forces on their necks,” he said today.

Resistance forces inside Iraq promised to “teach Turkish forces a tough lesson.” 

Qais al-Khazali, a leading figure in the Iranian-backed Popular Mobilisation Forces said that the expansion of military bases had exacerbated tensions and vowed to drive Turkey out of the country.

“We affirm that the barbaric Turkish moves will not go unanswered and will be dealt with when the time is right,” he said.

“We will force them to withdraw from Iraqi soil as we did with respect to American occupation troops.”

Western countries continue to arm Turkey despite allegations of war crimes. 

Britain has sold £77 million in arms to Turkey since Boris Johnson came to power in 2019.

This includes parts for armed helicopters, military combat vehicles and parts for surface to air missiles.

The Morning Star has previously reported on a secretive six-year history of British supplies to Turkish “killer drones."