ANKARA: Four Turkish soldiers were killed in northern Iraq in two separate attacks blamed on Kurdish militants, the Turkish military said on Tuesday.
Five other soldiers were injured when two improvised explosive devices exploded on Monday in the Zap region of northern Iraq, not far from Turkey’s southeastern border.
The army blamed a “separatist terrorist organization” — Turkey’s official term for the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) — for the blasts.
Clashes broke out immediately after the first of the attacks, the military said, as it reported it had killed 16 PKK members in air strikes in the past 24 hours.
It was not possible to independently verify the toll.
Since the PKK launched its insurgency in Turkey in 1984, over 40,000 people have been killed. The group is blacklisted as a terrorist organization by Ankara, the United States and the European Union.
After the collapse of a two-year cease-fire in 2015, Turkish military operations against the PKK intensified in southeastern Turkey.
Turkey regularly conducts air raids against PKK militants who have rear bases in the Qandil mountain area of Iraq, while Turkish ground troops sometimes stage incursions into the area.
The incident comes at a time of high tensions in Iraq following the controversial non-binding independence vote held by Iraqi Kurdistan last month, which was bitterly opposed by Turkey and Baghdad.
The blasts took place outside areas held by the Iraqi Kurdistan Regional Government.
Four Turkish soldiers killed in northern Iraq: army
Four Turkish soldiers killed in northern Iraq: army
Iraq PM candidate Al-Maliki meets senior US diplomat
- Last month President Donald Trump intervened in Iraq’s affairs by issuing an ultimatum that if Al-Maliki — a two-time former premier with close ties to Iran — was named Iraq’s next prime minister, the US would no longer help the country
BAGHDAD: The leading candidate to become Iraq’s next prime minister, Nouri Al-Maliki, met with US diplomat Tom Barrack on Friday after refusing to withdraw his nomination despite the US threatening to stop supporting the country if he returns to the post.
Barrack, the US envoy to Syria and ambassador to Turkiye, has recently visited Iraq multiple times to meet with senior officials.
Maliki’s media office said in a short statement that the PM candidate stressed during the meeting “the need to respect Iraq’s sovereignty and the will of its people.”
He also spoke of the “importance of supporting the democratic process and strengthening political stability” in Iraq.
It wasn’t clear what message Barrack conveyed to Maliki.
Last month President Donald Trump intervened in Iraq’s affairs by issuing an ultimatum that if Al-Maliki — a two-time former premier with close ties to Iran — was named Iraq’s next prime minister, the US would no longer help the country.
Trump’s threat left Iraqi leaders at a loss, particularly within the Coordination Framework — a ruling alliance of Shiite groups with varying degrees of links to Iran that nominated Maliki.
Earlier this week, Al-Maliki told AFP he would not withdraw his nomination, while also seeking to allay Washington’s concerns.
“I have absolutely no intention of withdrawing out of respect for my country, its sovereignty, and its will,” Al-Maliki told AFP in an interview.
