Turkey’s air force launched strikes on Kurdish targets in Iraq and Syria following an attack on a state-run defense company near Ankara that left five people dead and more than 20 injured. The Ministry of National Defence reported on Thursday that 47 targets were destroyed during the aerial offensive conducted the previous day, with 29 strikes in northern Iraq and 18 in northern Syria. The ministry stated that precautions were taken to prevent civilian casualties, though no specific locations of the strikes were disclosed.
The attacks came in response to an assault on TUSAS, a defense firm specializing in aerospace and military technology, by suspected Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) militants on Wednesday. In the attack, explosives were detonated, and gunfire erupted at the facility, which produces both civilian and military aircraft, as well as drones and space systems.
Turkey claims that the PKK and the Syrian Kurdish People’s Protection Units (YPG) are closely linked, and it blames the PKK for the assault. Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya identified one of the attackers as a PKK militant and revealed that Turkish investigators had confirmed the identity of another suspect, a woman named Mine Sevjin Alcicek.
The Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), a US-backed coalition primarily composed of Kurdish fighters and Arab allies, reported that 12 civilians, including two children, were killed in the Turkish airstrikes in northern and eastern Syria. Another 25 people were wounded. The SDF, which has been a key ally of the US in the fight against ISIS, holds significant territory in Syria, including regions where American troops are stationed.
Turkey’s Defence Minister Yasar Guler vowed to continue operations against Kurdish militants, declaring, “We will pursue them until the last terrorist is eliminated.” No group has claimed responsibility for the attack on the defense company, and the PKK has yet to issue a statement.
