Turkish jets strike Kurdish targets in northern Iraq

Turkish warplanes struck Kurdish militant targets in regions of northern Iraq on Sunday night in response to an increase in attacks on Turkish army bases, the Defense Ministry said.

"The Claw-Eagle Operation has started. Our planes are bringing the caves down on the terrorists' heads," the Turkish Defense Ministry said on Twitter.

Turkey regularly targets Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) militants, both in Turkey's mainly Kurdish southeast and in northern Iraq, where the group is based.

The warplanes took off from various air bases in Turkey, notably in the southeastern cities of Diyarbakir and Malatya.

The defense ministry subsequently said the air operation targeted the PKK in the region of its stronghold at Qandil, near the Iranian border, as well as the areas of Sinjar, Zap, Avasin-Basyan and Hakurk. The Al-Arabia TV channel reported that the Turkish warplanes dropped about 20 bombs on PKK facilities in the Sinjar mountains in northwestern Iraq.

The PKK, designated as a terrorist group by Turkey, the United States and European Union, took up arms against the Turkish state in 1984. More than 40,000 people have been killed in the conflict, focused in southeast Turkey.

While Turkish warplanes frequently target PKK targets in northern Iraq, Turkey has also warned in recent years of a potential ground offensive targeting the PKK bases in the Qandil mountains.

(CGTN)