Turkey hits 71 targets in Iraq, Syria in retaliation for soldiers’ deaths
Al Jazeera
Twelve Turkish soldiers were recently killed during fighting with banned Kurdistan Workers Party in northern Iraq.
Turkey has hit 71 sites allegedly linked to Kurdish groups in Syria and northern Iraq during air raids launched this week in retaliation for the deaths of 12 Turkish soldiers in Iraq, the defence minister has said.
In a video message posted on X, Defence Minister Yasar Guler claimed on Wednesday that at least 59 Kurdish fighters were “neutralised” in the attacks. Ankara uses that term to refer to killed or captured fighters of the banned Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK).
Twelve Turkish soldiers were killed during fighting with the PKK in northern Iraq, the Ministry of Defence said on Saturday, prompting Turkey to conduct numerous air raids and operations in the region.
“Our pain is great, but our determination is complete,” Guler said. “We avenged [the deaths] of our precious children and we will continue to do so.”
The military operations intensified over the past 36 hours, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Wednesday, as he pledged to avenge “our martyrs”.
