Turkish Army: "90-100 PKK Members Killed"

According to an online statement of the General Staff Presidency published on their website on Tuesday (23 August), 90 to 100 members of the armed outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) were killed during attacks of the Turkish Armed Forces (TSK) in Northern Iraq throughout the past seven days. 80 PKK members were wounded.

The General Staff announced that 13 targets were hit in the regions of Metina, Zap, Avaşin-Basyan and Khakurk on 20 August; 4 targets were bombed in the area of Qandil, Gara, Zap and Metina on 21 August and seven targets were hit in the regions of Zap, Khakurk, Avaşin-Basyan and Qandil on 22 August.

Using the most advanced target acquisition and fire control systems, 132 targets were hit with modern and classic ammunition in the course of the operations carried out from 17 to 22 August with 102 sorties, it was announced.

The General Staff claimed that the shelled targets had been included to the list of targets after a detailed analysis that was confirmed several times and strictly avoided residential areas of civilians.

The announcement read that 73 shelters, six hideouts, 18 caves, eight storages, 14 facilities, one arsenal, nine anti-aircraft locations and three control points were effectively destroyed.

It was said that the number of killed PKK members could not be determined yet. However, according to preliminary information, 90 to 100 PKK members were killed and more than 80 were wounded. The injured were taken to local hospitals and villages and contact with the PKK has apparently been cut off for most of them.

The General Staff denied that any civilians were killed throughout the operations. There was no statement regarding seven civilians that lost their lives as the result of bombing a vehicle that belonged to peasants of the villages of Boli and Kortek (Ranya/Süleymaniye) in Northern Iraq on Sunday (21 August). (IC/VK)