White House justifies Turkey’s use of anti-ISIS operation against Kurds

White House spokesman Alistair Baskey said Saturday night that “Turkey has the right to defend itself against terrorist attacks by Kurdish rebels.” This was the first US response to DEBKAfile’s disclosure of the green light Washington had given for Turkish forces to use their proclaimed cross-border operation against the Islamic State  in northern Syria to settle accounts with the Kurdish Workers Party (PKK) in Syria and Iraq. Baskey went on to point out that “Turkey is a NATO ally of the US.” This was the first time that the administration in Washington had admitted to an obligation to come to the aid of a NATO member under terrorist attack. Following the Turkish air strikes, the PKK declared its ceasefire with the Turkish government was over.