Turkey bombs PKK stronghold in northern Iraq

[Anthea]

Turkish warplanes bomb PKK stronghold in northern Iraq

Turkish warplanes launched attacks on camps of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) in northern Iraq late July 24, Doğan News Agency reported.

The attacks followed airstrikes into northern Syria, where Turkish fighter jets targetted Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) bases.

Private broadcaster NTV said that Turkish warplanes, which all took off from their base in the southeastern city of Diyarbakır, had also set off on a separate but simultaneous mission for a second wave of attacks against ISIL late July 25, after a first set of attacks earlier in the day.

http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/turkis ... sCatID=352

[Anthea]

Turkish jets bomb PKK Kurdish rebels in Iraq: spokesman

IRBIL, Iraq: Turkish warplanes bombed military positions of Turkey's rebel Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) in neighboring Iraq Friday, a spokesman for the rebel organization said.

"At around 11:00 pm (2000 GMT) tonight, Turkish warplanes started bombing our positions near the border, accompanied by heavy artillery shelling," PKK spokesman in Iraq Bakhtiar Dogan told AFP.

He said the strikes targeted mountain positions in the north of the Dohuk province, which is part of Iraq's northern autonomous region of Kurdistan.

The PKK, which is banned in Turkey and has long had a presence in Iraq, has several training camps in Dohuk, a province that also borders Kurdish areas of Syria.

Dogan also said that jets had flown over the Qandil mountains, an area north of the Iraqi Kurdish capital Irbil which the PKK's political leadership has been using as a safe haven, but had not conducted any strikes there.

If confirmed, the Turkish strikes against the PKK in Iraq would come on the same day as Turkey's first airstrikes against ISIS in Syria.

Turkish television channels late Friday reported that F-16 jets had taken off from their base in the southeastern city in Diyarbakir for what they had said would be a second wave of strikes against ISIS.

The military action by Ankara, which has been accused of colluding with the extremist group that last year declared a "caliphate" straddling Iraq and Syria, was seen as a potential game changer in the war against ISIS.

But the Turkish government had also vowed to take action against the PKK separatist militants who have claimed attacks on the security forces in the last days.

http://www.dailystar.com.lb/News/Middle ... media.ashx

[Anthea]

Turkish Air Strikes on Kurds

[Anthea]

The shocking news of Turkey attacking PKK positions within Iraq has now been confirmed by BBC 7.30 BST

Turkey's air force hits IS and PKK in Syria and Iraq

Turkish air force jets have carried out fresh strikes against Islamic State (IS) positions in Syria and also hit Kurdish militants in northern Iraq.

It was the second successive night that Turkey had targeted IS.

It follows a week which saw a bomb attack blamed on IS kill 32 people in the Turkish town of Suruc, and border clashes with the militant group.

The Iraq strikes were the first time Turkey had attacked the Kurdistan Workers' Party since a 2013 truce.

The group, also known as the PKK, has been fighting Turkey for an autonomous homeland for the Kurds for decades.

The PKK's military wing said it killed two Turkish police officers on Wednesday. The group claims the men had collaborated with IS in the bombing in Suruc, which targeted left-wing activists.

A government statement issued on Saturday said the air force had hit PKK shelters, bunkers, storage facilities and other "logistic points" in northern Iraq, including the Qandil mountains where the PKK's high command is based.

It did not give details of what the jets had targeted in their attacks on IS in Syria.

Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu has said the strikes against IS are part of a broad "process".

Turkey arrested hundreds of suspected IS supporters on Friday, and has also said it will let the US use a key airbase to attack IS targets.

Link to Full Article:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-33663005

[Anthea]

Still not any detailed information:

Reuters

Turkey confirms attacks on PKK militant camps in Iraq - statement

Turkish fighter jets launched attacks on camps of the militant Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) in northern Iraq overnight, the prime minister's office said on Saturday, in what is likely to be a major blow to the stalled Kurdish peace process.

Ground forces hit the PKK as well as Islamic State fighters in northern Syria, it said, as part of Ankara's campaign to take a prominent role in the U.S.-led coalition against the Islamist militant group.

The air strikes hit PKK targets in several locations, targeting warehouses, "logistic points", living quarters and storage buildings, it said.

The attack will likely deal a blow to the fragile peace process with the Kurds that was started in late 2012.

Turkey launched its first-ever air attack against Islamic State targets in Syria early on Friday, promising more decisive action against both the jihadists and Kurdish militants.

Turkish broadcasters later reported a second round of air strikes against Islamic State and the PKK shortly before midnight on Friday.

http://uk.reuters.com/article/2015/07/2 ... 3L20150725