Space Industry and Business News
THE STANS
Turkish drones kill 7 PKK members as FM meets Iraq Kurds
Turkish drones kill 7 PKK members as FM meets Iraq Kurds
by AFP Staff Writers
Arbil, Iraq (AFP) Aug 24, 2023

Twin Turkish drone strikes killed seven members of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) in Iraq's autonomous Kurdish region Thursday, authorities said, as Ankara's foreign minister visited the northern region.

Both strikes hit the mountainous Sidakan subdistrict, north of the regional capital Arbil, where the PKK maintains rear bases in its nearly four-decade-long insurgency against the Turkish military.

"A Turkish army drone struck a PKK vehicle, killing an official and two fighters," the Kurdish counterterrorism services said in a statement on the earlier strike.

In the second attack, just hours later, "two PKK officials and two PKK emergency personnel were killed," the counterterrorism services said.

The strikes came as Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan was in the Iraqi Kurdish regional capital Arbil after he began his first official trip to Iraq on Tuesday.

Fidan met the Kurdish region's president Nechirvan Barzani and prime minister Masrour Barzani, amid calls by Ankara for Baghdad to label the PKK a "terrorist" organisation.

"We have settled this question in Turkey once and for all. Now the PKK is hiding in Iraqi territory. We are working with Baghdad and Arbil to protect Iraq from the PKK," Fidan told a joint news conference with Masrour Barzani.

On Tuesday, Fidan had urged the federal government in Baghdad to brand the PKK a "terrorist" organisation.

Iraq's autonomous Kurdistan region has long been a target of Turkish air and ground operations against the PKK.

Turkey's military rarely comments on individual strikes.

Both the Kurdish authorities in Arbil and the federal government in Baghdad have been accused repeatedly of not doing enough to stop Turkey's frequent resort to military action on Iraqi soil in its nearly four-decade struggle against the PKK.

Statements condemning the violation of Iraqi sovereignty are periodically issued, particularly when there are civilian casualties.

But critics say both Arbil and Baghdad are more concerned with protecting trade and investment ties with Ankara.

On July 25, the office of Prime Minister Mohamed Shia al-Sudani announced a forthcoming visit to Iraq by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, but a date has yet to be set.

Related Links
News From Across The Stans

Subscribe Free To Our Daily Newsletters
Tweet

RELATED CONTENT
The following news reports may link to other Space Media Network websites.
THE STANS
Two militants killed attacking convoy of Chinese workers in Pakistan
Quetta, Pakistan (AFP) Aug 13, 2023
Two separatist militants were killed Sunday when they attacked a convoy carrying Chinese workers to a Beijing-financed port project in Pakistan's Balochistan province, officials said. A spokesman for China's consulate in Karachi said none of its nationals were killed or wounded in the attack, and urged Chinese citizens to heighten their vigilance. Various Baloch separatist groups have claimed attacks on projects linked to the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) project in the past, with tho ... read more

THE STANS
MIT engineers use kirigami to make ultrastrong, lightweight structures

China's new rules on AI-generated content

Taiwan's antique jade dealers see trade losing lustre

Invisible tagging system enhances 3D object tracking

THE STANS
Hughes awarded Space Force IDIQ Contract for LEO satellite services

RTX to develop platform agnostic, beyond-line-of-sight, satcoms

Lockheed Martin completes CDR for Tranche 1 Transport Layer Satellites

Northrop Grumman achieves key milestone in Arctic Satellite Broadband Mission

THE STANS
THE STANS
Present and future of satellite navigation

New Galileo station goes on duty

Potential earthquake precursor discovered through GPS measurements

Northrop Grumman's new airborne navigation system achieves successful flight test

THE STANS
Indonesia, Boeing agree deal for sale of F-15 jets

US approves sale to upgrade Taiwan warjets' air tracking

Zelensky thanks Denmark for F-16s; Greece offers F-16 training

US approves sale to upgrade Taiwan warjets' air tracking

THE STANS
Tough memory device aims for space missions

Chip giant Nvidia rides AI wave as profits soar

British chip champion Arm files to go public in US

Scientists develop fermionic quantum processor

THE STANS
Atmospheric circulation weakens following volcanic eruptions

Land Surveyor 4A satellite enters preset orbit

Planet Labs secures deal with an Asian Ministry of Foreign Affairs

Spire participates in Prize to advance measurements of Earth's Magnetic Field

THE STANS
As wildfires multiply, a new era of air pollution

Jakarta orders civil servants work from home to improve air quality

Oceans release microplastics into the atmosphere

London police probe vandalism of vehicle pollution cameras

Subscribe Free To Our Daily Newsletters




The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2024 - Space Media Network. All websites are published in Australia and are solely subject to Australian law and governed by Fair Use principals for news reporting and research purposes. AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA news reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. All articles labeled "by Staff Writers" include reports supplied to Space Media Network by industry news wires, PR agencies, corporate press officers and the like. Such articles are individually curated and edited by Space Media Network staff on the basis of the report's information value to our industry and professional readership. Advertising does not imply endorsement, agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) Statement Our advertisers use various cookies and the like to deliver the best ad banner available at one time. All network advertising suppliers have GDPR policies (Legitimate Interest) that conform with EU regulations for data collection. By using our websites you consent to cookie based advertising. If you do not agree with this then you must stop using the websites from May 25, 2018. Privacy Statement. Additional information can be found here at About Us.