8th Turkish soldier killed within 5 days in Iraq
Turkish bombardment in northern Iraq. Al-Ain news image.
Baghdad (IraqiNews.com) – The Turkish Ministry of Defense announced on Sunday that two Turkish soldiers were killed in a military operation in northern Iraq where Ankara is launching a military campaign against Kurdish militants, according to Sky News Arabia.
This brings the death toll of Turkish soldiers killed in the same area since last Tuesday to eight.
A Turkish soldier was killed last Saturday and another was injured in an explosion of an improvised explosive device, according to a statement issued by the Turkish Ministry of Defense.
A second Turkish soldier died of his wounds in hospital after he was injured on Friday, according to the Anadolu Agency.
Turkey carries out attacks frequently in Iraq, where the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) has bases and training camps in the Sinjar area and in the mountains of the Iraqi Kurdistan region bordering Turkey.
The PKK described by Ankara and its western allies as a ‘terrorist group’ has been staging a rebellion against Turkey since 1984, and is based in mountainous areas in northern Iraq.
In mid-April, Turkey, which has military bases in northern Iraq for 25 years, announced the launch of a new military operation against the Kurdish militants.
Additionally, the Turkish President, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, announced on Monday that a new military operation will be launched in northern Syria to establish a safe zone that is 30 km wide on the Syrian-Turkish border.