Turkish airstrikes hit PKK/YPG terrorist targets in northern Iraq and Syria after a deadly terrorist attack on the Turkish Aerospace Industries (TAI) facilities killed five people and injured 22 others in Türkiye's capital Ankara on Wednesday, the Defense Ministry said.
In a statement, the ministry said Turkish jets successfully destroyed 32 targets and that air operations will continue with determination.
"During the air operation, domestic and national ammunition was used to the maximum extent, neutralizing many terrorists," the ministry said.
“Neutralized” is a term used by Turkish officials to describe terrorists captured alive or dead.
While no terrorist group claimed responsibility for the deadly attack, Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya said preliminary findings suggest the PKK was behind it.
The PKK is known for using northern Iraq, near the Turkish border, as a hideout to plot terrorist attacks and launch attacks both on nearby Türkiye and locals in northern Syria.
The terrorist group has a foothold in northern Iraq's semi-autonomous north controlled by the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG), where the central Iraqi government has little influence.
Since Turkish operations have driven its domestic presence to near extinction, the PKK has moved a large chunk of its operations to northern Iraq, including a stronghold in the Mount Qandil region, located roughly 40 kilometers (25 miles) southeast of the Turkish border in Irbil.
Türkiye has, over the past 25 years, operated several dozen military bases in northern Iraq in its war against the PKK and has been conducting airstrikes as part of “Claw” operations since 2022 to demolish terrorist lairs and prevent the formation of a terrorist corridor along its borders.
Türkiye's cross-border operations into northern Iraq have been a source of tension with its southeastern neighbor for years. Ankara has asked Iraq for more cooperation in combating the PKK and Baghdad labeled the group a banned organization in March.
Türkiye also battles the YPG, the PKK’s Syrian offshoot, in oil-rich northern Syria.
The PKK, designated a terrorist group by Türkiye, the United States and the European Union, launched a bloody campaign of terrorism in the 1980s, targeting Turkish security forces and civilians, primarily in the southeastern Türkiye, close to the border with Iraq. More than 40,000 people were killed in the acts of terrorism, while the PKK leadership retains a swath of territory in Iraq's north, where they have hideouts. Türkiye has conducted years of cross-border military operations against terrorists in Iraq and Syria. The PKK, under the name of YPG, also controls parts of northern Syria, right across the Turkish border.
