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ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Turkey’s defence ministry announced more than 20 aircraft carried out an operation 200 kilometres into Kurdistan Region territory on Tuesday morning. A local mayor said suspected Turkish drones had targeted a rural area of eastern Sulaimani province, near the border with Iran, sparking fear among the local population.
The mayor of Penjwen, Zana Rahman, said the strikes started at around 6:30am and continued for around 20 minutes, targeting agricultural areas of the district.
“All the suspicions are that Turkish drones carried out the strikes, but we will look further into the matter,” he told Rudaw. “There has not been much damage, but it has frightened farmers in the area.”
Penjwen is located on the border with Iran. Kurdistan Region’s mountainous frontiers are home to several armed groups fighting for Kurdish rights in both Turkey and Iran.
Turkey’s defence ministry said they carried out an air operation on Tuesday, targeting “terrorist” targets in the Asos region, claiming to hit 28 targets, including shelters and ammunition depots. “A heavy blow was dealt to the presence of the terrorist organization in the area,” the ministry stated.
The Asos mountain range is located north of Penjwen.
Turkey launched twin operations, Claw-Lightning and Claw-Thunderbolt, against the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) in the Kurdistan Region on April 23. The operations are focused on the Metina and Avashin areas of northern Duhok province, far from Penjwen. However, Turkey has used its air force to attack areas further south on several occasions.
In June, four people were killed in Turkish airstrikes on Sulaimani’s Halsho subdistrict, bordering Iran. In May, Turkey bombed the same Asos mountain range. In February, Turkish airstrikes targeted Sulaimani’s Pishdar district.
Iran has also targeted Kurdish opposition groups based in the Kurdistan Region.
Civilian populations and the environment have been devastated by Turkey’s conflict with the PKK. Three civilians have been killed in Duhok in the past two weeks and some 20 villages have been emptied in the province this year.
The military activity also sparks wildfires that are often difficult to extinguish because of the difficult terrain and legacy landmines left over from the Iran-Iraq war. Nearly 15 dunams of land was scorched in Penjwen last week. Armed people had been spotted in the area.
The PKK is an armed Kurdish group fighting for the increased rights of Kurds in Turkey. Ankara considers it a terrorist organization. For decades, Turkish forces have pursued the PKK within the Kurdistan Region’s borders. A parliamentary report issued last year concluded that at least 504 villages have been emptied across the Kurdistan Region since 1992, and hundreds of people have been killed.
Updated at 10:09 am
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