FRESH AIRSTRIKES HIT PKK IN SOUTHEAST TURKEY

Kurdish fighters of the PKK. (Photo: ARA News file)

Ankara, 13 Shawwal 1436/29 July 2015 (MINA) – On Tuesday, Turkish fighter jets hit locations of the Kurdistan workers’ Party (PKK) in southeastern Turkey “after the group fired on security forces”, Turkish army said.

“Two F-16 jets carried out airstrikes at 15:10 local time against the terrorist group (referring to PKK) in a mountainous area near Iraqi border,” Turkish army command said in a statement, adding that the targets were “directly hit”, ARA News quoted by Mi’raj Islamic News Agency (MINA) as reporting.

Tuesday’s strikes were preceded by similar operations by the Turkish air force on PKK camps in northern Iraq.

The PKK leadership said it will respond to the Turkish fire, emphasizing that the planned truce between their fighters and Turkey “has been violated by the Turkish army”.

Turkish authorities blamed the PKK for a recent series of deadly attacks.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan issued a statement on Tuesday, saying that the peace process with the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) “cannot continue in the face of attacks on Turkish targets”.

The airstrikes against PKK in southern Turkey are reportedly the first since 2011, when F-16 jets killed 34 Kurdish civilians in a Turkish raid in Uludere area, southeast the country. Although Turkey claimed to have hit PKK positions, the victims turned out to have been cigarette smugglers. (T/P001/R03)

Mi’raj Islamic News Agency (MINA)