2008 Turkish incursion into northern Iraq day of the operation, Turkish President Abdullah Gül made a telephone call to Iraqi President Jalal Talabani, himself a Kurd, to brief him on the details of the incursion. He also invited Talabani to come to Turkey. Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said he called Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki on the night the ground operation began, and later U.S. President George W. Bush. The United States was guarded in its response to the incursion, requesting that Turkey take care to only target the PKK, to "limit the scope and duration of their operations," and to work with Iraqi
Turgut Atakol Turgut Atakol Turgut Atakol (1915 in Istanbul, Turkey – April 9, 1988 in Istanbul) was a Turkish basketball player, referee and sports official. He played for the Galatasaray team in Istanbul. Upon retiring, he became a referee, calling many international games, including the Hungary-Czechoslovakia final of the 1955 European Championship. He was the co-founder and president of the Turkish Basketball Federation (1958–1964), director of the organizing committee of the 1971 Mediterranean Games, secretary general of the Turkish Olympic Committee (1973–1982) and later its president (1982–1988), and member of the International Olympic Committee (1984–1988). Turgut Atakol also wrote a book ""Techniques