Shafaq News/ Turkish authorities announced on Wednesday thearrest of a Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) member who was active in Iraq'sMakhmour camp and a number of countries.
The PKK member, Bari Iusubov, was nabbed in Turkiye in ajoint operation conducted by the Turkish National Intelligence Organization(MIT) and security forces, according to Anadolu Agency.
He was actively involved in “spreading PKK propaganda inRussia, Kazakhstan, Armenia, and the group's Makhmour camp in Iraq,” Anadoluagency reported, adding that he maintained close ties with high-ranking group membersand was involved in several operations.
Under surveillance by Turkiye's National IntelligenceOrganization (MIT) since 2020, Iusubov has now been arrested and imprisoned,the same source stated.
Notably, Turkiye conducts operations to combat the PKK,which targets its forces and citizens and operates in several countries in theregion, including Iraq, Syria, and Iran.
The conflict between Turkiye and the PKK has its origins inthe early 1980s when the PKK began its armed struggle for an independentKurdish state within Turkiye. Throughout the 1980s and 1990s, this conflictescalated into a full-scale insurgency, with the PKK employing guerrillatactics and the Turkish military responding with major operations targeting PKKstrongholds, both within Turkiye and across the border in northern Iraq.
Recently, on August 15, Turkiye and Iraq signed an agreementafter high-level security talks in Ankara, aimed at boosting military,security, and counter-terrorism cooperation, specifically against the PKK. Theagreement includes plans for joint coordination and training centers in Baghdadand Bashiqa, northern Iraq. Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan described theagreement as "historically significant," while Iraqi Foreign MinisterFuad Hussein called it a landmark deal, particularly in defense and securitycollaboration.