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Akar: Türkiye neutralises 13 more PKK terrorists in northern Iraq operation

Among those neutralised were terrorists who carried out an attack on Turkish forces on Saturday, martyring two soldiers, Defence Minister Hulusi Akar says.

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A total of 480 terrorists have been neutralised since the beginning of Operation Claw-Lock, Akar says.

The Turkish military has neutralised 13 PKK terrorists over the last two days during its cross-border operation in northern Iraq, the national defence minister announced.

This came after two Turkish soldiers were killed on Saturday during ongoing Operation Claw-Lock in the Zap region.

The operation was launched by Turkish commandos against terrorists attempting to escape from the region after Saturday’s attack, Hulusi Akar said on Sunday at a video conference meeting with the commanders of the units participating in the Operation Claw-Lock.

“Among the neutralised terrorists are the traitors who carried out the attack," Akar said.

A total of 480 terrorists have been neutralised since the beginning of Operation Claw-Lock, he added.

Two soldiers were "martyred and three others injured as a result of harassing fire by the members of the separatist terrorist organisation" during Türkiye’s Operation Claw-Lock, the National Defence Ministry said on Saturday.

Türkiye launched Operation Claw-Lock in April to target the PKK terror organization's hideouts in the Metina, Zap, and Avasin-Basyan regions of northern Iraq, located near the Turkish border.

It was preceded by Operations Claw-Tiger and Claw-Eagle launched in 2020 to root out terrorists hiding out in northern Iraq and plotting cross-border attacks in Türkiye.

Recently, Türkiye launched Operation Claw-Sword in northern Iraq and Syria, a cross-border aerial campaign against the terror group PKK/YPG, which has illegal hideouts across the Iraqi and Syrian borders where they plan and sometimes execute attacks on Turkish soil.

In its more than 35-year terror campaign against Türkiye, the PKK –– listed as a terrorist organisation by Türkiye, the US and EU –– has been responsible for the deaths of more than 40,000 people, including women, children and infants.