Turkish warplanes intensify airstrikes on PKK positions in Sinjar

Shafaq News/ A security source reported, on Friday, that Turkish warplanes have escalated their airstrikes on positions belonging to the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) and local forces allied with the group in the Sinjar district, located west of Nineveh province in northern Iraq.

The source told Shafaq News Agency that the intensified bombardment specifically targeted tunnels, headquarters, and military positions of the PKK and the Sinjar Protection Units (YBS) within the Sinjar Mountain area.

The airstrikes continued through Friday morning, though details on the resulting casualties or damages remain unavailable.

This surge in Turkish airstrikes follows a series of operations that began on Wednesday, targeting PKK positions in northern Iraq and Syria. The strikes were carried out in retaliation for an armed attack on the Turkish Aerospace Industries complex (TUSAŞ) in the Kahramankazan district of Ankara, Turkiye's capital.

The conflict between Turkiye and the PKK dates back to the early 1980s when the PKK, founded by Abdullah Ocalan, began advocating for an independent Kurdish state within Turkiye.

Throughout the 1980s and 1990s, the conflict intensified, with the PKK engaging in guerrilla warfare and the Turkish military conducting large-scale operations against PKK bases, particularly in southeastern Turkiye and northern Iraq.

The early 2000s saw intermittent ceasefires and attempts at peace negotiations, including a notable peace process in 2013. However, this process collapsed in 2015, leading to renewed hostilities.