Kurdish opposition group makes terror list

WASHINGTON, Feb. 5 (UPI) -- The militant Free Life Party of Kurdistan operating in northwestern Iraq was listed by the U.S. Department of Treasury as a terrorist organization.

Treasury said in a statement that it listed the Free Life Party of Kurdistan, or PJAK, as a terrorist organization for its ties to the separatist Kurdistan Workers' Party, or PKK.

"With today's action, we are exposing PJAK's terrorist ties to the PKK and supporting Turkey's efforts to protect its citizens from attack," said Stuart Levey, the undersecretary for terrorism and financial intelligence with the U.S. Treasury Department.

The statement said the PKK created PJAK to serve with the intention of operating as an independent affiliate of the Kurdish separatist group in order to appeal to Kurdish groups in Iran.

Iranian media in 2008 said PJAK released statements to Kurdish media outlets claiming it had halted its guerrilla activity in the Kurdish regions of Iran. PJAK issued a statement on its Web site saying the reports were "not true and a total fabrication by the Iranian regime to cover up its inability to combat the PJAK forces."

PJAK in September called on the international community to stand in solidarity to protest alleged human-rights abuses against its prisoners in Iran.

The PKK was designated as a terrorist entity in 2002 for its militant campaign against Turkey. The U.S. military in Iraq has shared intelligence on PKK activity in Iraq with the Turkish government.