Turkey launches airstrikes against Kurdish rebels in Iraq

Published March 24th, 2016 - 01:30 GMT
Kurdish men wait in front of Turkish military barricade as they try to enter Cizre for Newroz celebration in Mardin, on March 22, 2016. (AFP/Ilyas Akengin)
Kurdish men wait in front of Turkish military barricade as they try to enter Cizre for Newroz celebration in Mardin, on March 22, 2016. (AFP/Ilyas Akengin)

Turkish warplanes have launched fresh airstrikes against Kurdish rebel positions in northern Iraq, Associated Press reported.

A statement from Turkey's military said 12 F-16 and F-4 jets struck 11 targets of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) late Wednesday. It said ammunition depots, bunkers, and shelters were all hit during the raids.

This is the third such operation carried out by the Turkish military since a suicide attack in Ankara killed 38 people on March 13. The attack was claimed by an offshoot of the PKK, and Turkey has since launched retaliatory strikes against its affilitates in Iraq.

The PKK, outlawed in Turkey, has also been the target of a military campaign in southeast Turkey since a ceasefire collapsed in July.

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