Turkish Forces Kill 21 Kurdish Fighters in Northern Syria and Iraq
Ankara, Turkey – According to Reuters, the Turkish Ministry of Defense has confirmed that Turkish military forces have killed 21 Kurdish fighters in Northern Syria and Iraq. The fatalities include 20 members of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) and Syrian Kurdish forces from the People’s Protection Units (YPG), who were reportedly preparing for an attack.
In a statement, the ministry vowed that their operations would continue to be "effective and resolute." The PKK, deemed a terrorist organization by Turkey, the EU, and the U.S., has been engaged in an armed conflict against the Turkish state since 1984. This conflict has claimed the lives of over 40,000 people.
Turkey views the YPG, the dominant force in the U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), as an extension of the PKK and has also classified it as a terrorist group. Following the fall of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad earlier this month, Ankara has repeatedly called for the YPG’s disarmament, asserting that the group has no place in Syria’s future.
These operations take place amidst ongoing military clashes in Northern Syria between Turkey-backed Syrian factions and the YPG. Turkey regularly conducts cross-border airstrikes and military operations targeted at the PKK, which maintains bases in the mountainous regions of Northern Iraq. Today, a senior PKK figure was "neutralized" in Northern Iraq.
