In response to the recent loss of 12 soldiers in clashes with the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) in northern Iraq, the Turkish air force launched a series of air strikes on Saturday, annihilating 29 identified targets, according to a statement from the defense ministry.
The air operations, executed at 10 p.m. (1900 GMT), focused on key bases, shelters, and oil facilities suspected to be utilized by PKK militants. The defense ministry, however, did not specify the exact regions within northern Iraq and Syria that were subjected to the strikes.
Earlier on the same day, the defense ministry reported the deaths of 12 Turkish soldiers in the past 48 hours during confrontations with PKK militants in northern Iraq. The military responded with targeted operations against PKK positions, resulting in the “neutralization” of at least 16 militants on Saturday, with an additional seven militants reported killed on Friday.
The term “neutralized” is commonly employed by Turkey to denote the elimination of militants. The PKK, classified as a terrorist organization by Turkey, the United States, and the European Union, initiated its armed struggle against the Turkish state in 1984.
Turkey has a history of conducting air strikes in neighboring Iraq as part of its ongoing campaign against PKK militants entrenched in the region.
