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| Iraq |
| Turkish planes bomb targets in Northern Iraq |
| 2010-05-21 |
| Turkish military aircraft bombed Kurdish rebel targets in northern Iraq in an operation said be the largest in one-and-half years, Turkish broadcasters and an army source said on Thursday. The raid by some 20 planes hit nearly 50 targets in northern Iraq's Zab valley area, the NTV television channel said. The state Anatolian news agency also reported an aerial operation against the militants in northern Iraq. The Anatolian said "a terrorist group" was spotted approaching the Turkish border and the aircraft attacked the group in an operation lasting for an hour. A senior army source in the southeast said a second aerial bombardment was continuing against the PKK targets in the evening hours. The source said Thursday's raid was the largest over the last one-and-half years and targeted the PKK underground shelters in addition to rebel groups in movement. There was no information on possible PKK casualties. On May 8, Turkish army forces pursued Kurdish guerrillas into northern Iraq and struck suspected targets with helicopter gunships and drones, killing at least five rebels. The Iraqi government has protested against Turkish land incursions aimed at rooting out the PKK. In February 2008, the military staged a ground incursion with 10,000 troops. It also regularly bombards suspected PKK targets from the air. The PKK took up arms against the Turkish state in 1984 in a conflict that has claimed 40,000 lives. The rebels, who are mainly based in Iraqi Kurdistan, say they are fighting for greater political rights for Turkey's estimated 15 million Kurds. The United States and the European Union both label the PKK a terrorist organization. |
| Posted by:lotp |
| #1 ION TROJANS/OTTOMANS, TOPIX > [Turkic HAWK ADS]MISSLES IN TURKEY TO PROTECT DAMASCUS [Syria]; and SAME > VARIOUS > TURKEY DEMANDS IRAN DELIVER URANIUM IN ONE MONTH, or TEHRAN = IRAN can kiss its new URANIUM SWAP/ENERGY DEAL wid ANKARA goodbye. |
| Posted by: JosephMendiola 2010-05-21 00:23 |