Turkish Army neutralizes 4 PKK militants in Iraq and Syria
Shafaq News/ The Turkish Ministry of National Defenseannounced, on Sunday, the neutralization of four Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK)militants in Iraq and Syria.
The ministry stated in a post on X that three PKK memberswere identified and neutralized in the Operation Claw-Lock area in northernIraq, while another PKK/YPG militant was targeted in the Operation Peace Springzone in northern Syria.
No further details were provided so far.
Turkiye uses the term “neutralize” to indicate that a memberhas been killed or captured.
Notably, Operation Peace Spring, launched by Turkiye onOctober 9, 2019, and concluding on November 25, 2019, aimed to establish a"safe zone" by driving Kurdish forces away from the Turkish-Syrianborder.
During this time, Turkish forces and their allies capturedkey territories, including Ras al-Ayn, Tell Abyad, and sections of thestrategic M4 highway, securing control over an area of approximately 4,820square kilometers.
The Claw-Lock operation, launched by Turkiye in April 2021,targets the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) in the KRI, particularly in regionssuch as Gara, Hakurk, and Metina.
The PKK, designated a terrorist organization by Turkiye, theUnited States, and the European Union, has been engaged in an armed struggleagainst the Turkish state since the 1980s, seeking greater autonomy for theKurdish population in Turkiye.
This decades-long conflict has led to tens of thousands ofdeaths, with Turkiye conducting cross-border military operations to target PKKstrongholds in Iraq and YPG positions in Syria, both of which Ankara views asextensions of the PKK.
