Turkish airstrikes kill 27 PKK members in Northern Iraq: Defense Ministry
Shafaq News/ 27 Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) members were killed in airstrikes on their positions in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq (KRI), the Turkish Defense Ministry announced on Friday
According to a ministry statement reported by Turkiye's state-run Anadolu Agency, “The total number of PKK terrorists neutralized in northern Iraq over the past 4 days has reached 27.”
“This Monday, air operations were carried out in the Metina, Zap, Gara, Hakurk, Qandil, and Asos regions, where at least 20 terrorists were initially reported neutralized.”
Notably, Turkish authorities use the term "neutralize" to indicate that the members in question were either killed, captured, or surrendered.
The PKK maintains strongholds in KRI, where Turkiye has had a military presence for 25 years. Designated a terrorist organization by Turkiye, the US, and the EU, the PKK began an insurgency against Ankara in 1984 to create an independent Kurdish state. Over time, its objectives shifted to seeking autonomy in southeastern Turkiye.
The conflict, which has resulted in over 40,000 deaths, initially focused on rural areas of southeastern Turkiye but has increasingly moved to the mountainous regions of northern Iraq's semi-autonomous Kurdistan.
For years, Turkiye has conducted cross-border military operations, effectively controlling or overseeing large areas of the Syrian and Iraqi territories adjacent to Turkiye.
Last month, Ankara announced a military cooperation agreement with Iraq, which includes the establishment of joint training and command centers. Baghdad also declared its decision to ban the PKK as a political party.
