Turkey reinforces Iraq border

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ISTANBUL — Turkey poured additional troops and tanks into the Iraqi border area yesterday, even as it agreed to a U.S. appeal for "a few more days" to resolve a dispute over Kurdish rebel bases in Iraq.

A Kurdish rebel spokesman located in Iraq's northern mountains told The Washington Times by telephone that the group was about to announce a pause in its attacks on Turkish forces.

VIDEO:U.S. working to stop Turkish incursion into Iraq

VIDEO:Turkish soldiers patrolling Iraqi border

The spokesman, identified only by his first name, Esat, also said the rebel Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) was holding a dozen Turkish soldiers captured in a raid Sunday that left a dozen other soldiers dead.

The United States and its allies are scrambling to persuade the Turks to hold off on retaliatory raids on PKK sanctuaries in Iraq, fearing a cross-border incursion could destabilize the most peaceful region in Iraq.

The Turkish parliament authorized such action last week, but Foreign Minister Ali Babacan told reporters yesterday that the vote "does not mean we have to use [the authority]. We favor finding solutions through diplomatic means."

Press reports quoted Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan telling Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice on Sunday night that Turkey expected "speedy steps from the U.S." in cracking down on the Kurdish rebels.

Miss Rice expressed sympathy and asked "for a few days," to end the attacks, which have killed 30 soldiers and several civilians in the past two weeks, the reports said.

Despite the assurances, local residents reported seeing at least 50 tanks traveling southward yesterday toward the border village of Daglica, the scene of Sunday's PKK ambush. Another 50 tanks were reported moving into Cukurca, a border town 25 miles to the west.

The Turkish army has forbidden journalists from visiting Daglica. But with news of daylong bombardments of border areas, some Turkish analysts think Turkish units have already crossed the border.

Ismet Berkan, the editor of the liberal daily Radikal, told CNN-Turk last night that "units may have gone up to [five miles] into Iraq" to cut off the estimated 150 PKK militants responsible for Sunday"s attack.