As Türkiye bids farewell to 12 soldiers killed in attacks by the PKK terrorist group in northern Iraq, the Ministry of National Defense disclosed the death toll that Turkish airstrikes inflicted upon the terrorist group.
The ministry said the airstrikes targeted “terrorist targets” and “neutralized” at least 26 terrorists, a term used to describe terrorists captured alive or dead. The strikes were carried out in the regions immediately across the Turkish border with Iraq and Syria. Border regions in both countries are favored hideouts of the terrorist group which has been targeting Türkiye for more than 40 years.
The statement said the work to assess the total body count is still underway. Defense Minister Yaşar Güler announced on Sunday that 30 terrorists were eliminated since the deaths of 12 soldiers on Friday and Saturday.
Following the attack that targeted a Turkish military outpost in a mountainous region of Iraq, authorities vowed to retaliate against the killings, and the Turkish Armed Forces (TSK) announced a series of airstrikes and operations to destroy PKK targets in Iraq and Syria.
In a press release on its website on Saturday, the ministry said "29 targets, including caves, bunkers, shelters, oil installations and warehouses, were destroyed" during the operation carried out at 10 p.m. (7 p.m. GMT).
Güler oversaw the airstrikes at the Command Center of Air Forces. He congratulated the pilots who took part in the operation, along with senior commanders of the Turkish Armed Forces.
More than 2,150 PKK terrorists have been "neutralized" since Jan. 1, Güler said Sunday.
