ANKARA, Jan. 13 (Xinhua) -- Türkiye has launched airstrikes against Kurdish militants in northern Syria and northern Iraq in retaliation for their recent killing of nine Turkish soldiers, the Turkish Defense Ministry said Saturday.
"Air operations were carried out on terrorist targets in the regions of Metina, Hakurk, Gara, and Qandil" in northern Iraq, along with other targets in northern Syria, the ministry said in a statement without specifying the targeted areas in Syria.
The strikes hit 29 targets, including "caves, bunkers, shelters and oil installations" belonging to the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) in Iraq and the Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG) in Syria, it said.
The operations came after five Turkish soldiers were killed in a PKK attack in northern Iraq on Friday night. The attack also wounded eight others, of whom four died later of critical injuries.
The Friday clashes erupted after PKK militants attempted to infiltrate a Turkish base in the "Operation Claw-Lock" zone in northern Iraq.
At least 23 PKK members were "neutralized" in Iraq, while nine others were killed in Syria, said the statement, adding that the operations against the Kurdish militants are continuing.
Turkish authorities often use the term "neutralize" in their statements to imply the "terrorists" in question surrendered or were killed or captured.
The Turkish government launched "Operation Claw-Lock" in northern Iraq in April 2022 to fight against the PKK.
The PKK, listed as a terrorist organization by Türkiye, the United States and the European Union, has rebelled against the Turkish government for more than three decades, while the YPG is regarded by Türkiye as the Syrian branch of the outlawed PKK.
The Turkish forces frequently carry out ground operations, airstrikes, and artillery bombardments against the PKK targets in northern Iraq, especially the Qandil Mountains, the main base of the group, and have launched multiple operations since 2016 in northern Syria in order to create a YPG-free zone along the border with the neighboring country. ■
