Türkiye launches new wave of strikes on Syria-based terror groups

Türkiye has a launched a new wave of air strikes against PKK/YPG targets in northern Syria, Defence Ministry said.

Late Friday's announcement came just hours after Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan discussed the ongoing situation with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken.

The ministry said it had hit 15 PKK/YPG targets in northern Syria "with the maximum amount" of ammunition.

"Operations were conducted under our legitimate self-defence right permitted in Article 51 of UN Charter," the ministry said, adding, "Our fight against terrorism will continue with determination until the last terrorist is neutralised."

Earlier, Fidan told Blinken that Ankara's air strikes in Syria will continue "with determination" despite Thursday's drone episode — the first of its kind between the strategic NATO allies.

Blinken "highlighted the need to coordinate and deconflict our activities," State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said after the call with Fidan.

Türkiye stepped up cross-border air raids against PKK/YPG targets in northeastern Syria and northern Iraq in retaliation for a terror attack in Ankara that wounded two policemen last Sunday.

PKK — listed as a terror group by Ankara and its Western allies including US — claimed responsibility for the first bombing to hit the Turkish capital since 2016.

Türkiye unveiled that two PKK/YPG assailants neutralized in the Ankara attack came from Syria.

SDF is a misnomer for the YPG, a Syrian offshore of the PKK. The US created the SDF in 2014 on the pretext of fighting Daesh terror group despite Ankara offering Washington to collaborate in fight against the terror group.

Aware of YPG's tainted origins, Washington named it as SDF only to justify to the world that it wasn't fighting one terror group with another. But Ankara has always objected to the move and over time relations between the US and Türkiye have faced an overwhelming strain.

Meanwhile, Anadolu Agency said on Friday that Turkish intelligence agents killed a PKK terrorist in an operation in Iraq's Sinjar region. The agency identified him as Ilyas Biro Eli and said he was responsible for an assassination unit.

"We will continue to fight terrorism wherever it emanates from. We will extinguish it at its sources, be it in northern Iraq or northern Syria,” wrote Fahrettin Altun, Turkey's presidential communications director.