Turkey strikes ‘500 Kurdish targets’ & plans more military bases in N. Iraq after offensive – report

Ankara plans to set up more temporary military bases in northern Iraq, after stepping up its strikes against Kurdish militants there, a senior Turkish official said, according to Reuters.

Turkey launched two separate operations in northern Iraq against the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) on Sunday and Tuesday. The military activities began in response to what Ankara said was an increase in militant attacks on Turkish army bases along the border between the countries.

On Thursday, the Defense Ministry said Turkish forces struck more than 500 PKK targets with F-16 jets, drones, and howitzers as part of the Operation Claw-Tiger in the Haftanin region.

Turkey’s ambassador to Baghdad, Fatih Yildiz, tweeted on Tuesday that he had been summoned by the Iraqi Foreign Ministry over the military operation. The United Arab Emirates (UAE) said on Wednesday that “Turkish and Iranian military interventions” violated Iraqi sovereignty. The UAE and Turkey are in opposition on several fronts, including in Libya, where they back rival sides.