The Turkish militarys 12yearold. $7 billionayear campaign against Kurdish militants poses another threat to stability and Turkish democracy. Under the mantle of combating terrorism. the military conducts a violent campaign responsible which has claimed almost 20.000 lives and takes an increasing toll on civil liberties. Turkish forces have destroyed or evacuated more than 2.500 Kurdish villages in southeastern Turkey and have created almost 3.000.000 internal refugees. Death squads connected with security forces and armed Islamic extremists have been responsible for hundreds of unsolved killings and disappearances. Mr. Chairman. I want to say how proud I am that this bipartisan group of Members offering this particular amendment is united in our concern about suffering refugees. We are all concerned about human rights. and we speak out on human rights abuses whenever and wherever they exist. but in this case we have an opportunity to help people with our medicines. our food. our clothing. and all we are asking for is a way. a land route to transship them. Unfortunately. that has been blockaded.
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refugees