BAGHDAD: Two Iraqi soldiers were killed in rare clashes Sunday with the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) in the north of the country where the group has bases, the army said overnight.
The PKK, seen as a “terrorist” group by Turkey, the United States and the European Union, has waged an insurgency against the Turkish state since 1984.
It has rear bases in the Qandil mountain area of Iraq’s autonomous Kurdish region.
An Iraqi military statement said PKK fighters “attacked an army checkpoint in the (northern) Nineveh province... (and) two soldiers were killed” around 100 kilometers west of Mosul near the Syria border.
Five PKK members were wounded in the clashes which erupted when an Iraqi soldier manning the checkpoint asked the group for a permit, usually issued by Iraqi security forces, which would allow them to go across.
“It is the first time that we have confrontations of this scale in the region,” Mohammad Khalil, the mayor of the nearby city of Sinjar, told AFP.
The PKK deployment in northern Iraq has been a constant source of tension between Baghdad and Ankara, with Turkey pressing Iraq to play a bigger role in fighting the group.
Earlier this month Turkish Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu said his country would carry out a joint operation with Iran against the PKK.
Soylu did not specify which PKK bases the planned operation would target but President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has previously said it would be against militant hideouts in Iraq.
Like Turkey, Iran has for decades fought the PKK affiliate, the Party of Free Life of Kurdistan (PJAK), which also has rear bases in neighboring Iraq.
The Turkish military has often bombed PKK bases in Iraq’s mountainous regions.
In January, one person was killed when Turkish troops opened fire at Iraqi Kurds who stormed a Turkish army position in northwestern Iraq to protest the deaths of four civilians in alleged Turkish bombardment.
Baghdad summoned the Turkish ambassador while Ankara accused the PKK of having provoked the incident.
US-backed Kurdish fighters are leading the battle against the Daesh group in Syria.
![]()
Two Iraqi troops killed in rare clashes with PKK: army
Two Iraqi troops killed in rare clashes with PKK: army
- The Kurdistan Workers Party is classified as a terrorist group by a number of countries
- The fighting started after an Iraqi soldier asked the group for a permit
White House confirms US-Iran nuclear talks in Oman on Friday
- Tensions between the countries spiked after Donald Trump suggested the US might use force against Iran in response to the crackdown on protesters
DUBAI/WASHINGTON: The United States will hold nuclear talks with Iran on Friday in Oman, a White House official said, as tensions between the countries remain high following Tehran’s bloody crackdown on nationwide protests last month.
The US confirmation on Wednesday came after Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi also said the meeting was due to be held in Muscat.
Officials had said earlier this week that it would likely happen in Turkey.
The announcement by Araghchi on Wednesday came after hours of indications that the anticipated talks were faltering over changes in the format and content of the talks. US
Earlier Wednesday, a regional official said Iran was seeking a “different” type of meeting than that what had been proposed by Turkiye, one focused exclusively on the issue of Iran’s nuclear program, with participation limited to Iran and the United States.
The official spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to brief the media.
The Trump administration confirmed the US will take part in high-level talks with Iran in Oman instead of Turkiye as originally planned, according to a White House official.
The official, who was not authorized to comment publicly and spoke on the condition of anonymity, said that several Arab and Muslim leaders urged the Trump administration on Wednesday not to walk away from talks even as Iranian officials pressed to narrow the scope of talks and change the venue for the negotiations.
The official added that the White House remains “very skeptical” that the talks will be successful but has agreed to go along with the change in plans out of respect for allies in the region.
Tensions between the countries spiked after Trump suggested the US might use force against Iran in response to the crackdown on protesters. Trump also has been pushing Tehran for a deal to constrain its nuclear program.
Rubio hopes talks will go beyond nuclear ones
Iran’s reformist President Masoud Pezeshkian on Tuesday said he had instructed the foreign minister to “pursue fair and equitable negotiations” with the US, in the first clear sign from Tehran it wants to try to negotiate. That signaled the move is supported by Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who has the final say on all matters of state and previously dismissed any negotiations.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the US hoped to discuss a number of concerns beyond the nuclear issue, including discussions on Iran’s ballistic missiles, support for proxy networks across the region and the “treatment of their own people.”
“The leadership of Iran at the clerical level does not reflect the people of Iran. I know of no other country where there’s a bigger difference between the people who lead the country and the people who live there,” he told reporters.
The US confirmation on Wednesday came after Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi also said the meeting was due to be held in Muscat.
Officials had said earlier this week that it would likely happen in Turkey.
The announcement by Araghchi on Wednesday came after hours of indications that the anticipated talks were faltering over changes in the format and content of the talks. US
Earlier Wednesday, a regional official said Iran was seeking a “different” type of meeting than that what had been proposed by Turkiye, one focused exclusively on the issue of Iran’s nuclear program, with participation limited to Iran and the United States.
The official spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to brief the media.
The Trump administration confirmed the US will take part in high-level talks with Iran in Oman instead of Turkiye as originally planned, according to a White House official.
The official, who was not authorized to comment publicly and spoke on the condition of anonymity, said that several Arab and Muslim leaders urged the Trump administration on Wednesday not to walk away from talks even as Iranian officials pressed to narrow the scope of talks and change the venue for the negotiations.
The official added that the White House remains “very skeptical” that the talks will be successful but has agreed to go along with the change in plans out of respect for allies in the region.
Tensions between the countries spiked after Trump suggested the US might use force against Iran in response to the crackdown on protesters. Trump also has been pushing Tehran for a deal to constrain its nuclear program.
Rubio hopes talks will go beyond nuclear ones
Iran’s reformist President Masoud Pezeshkian on Tuesday said he had instructed the foreign minister to “pursue fair and equitable negotiations” with the US, in the first clear sign from Tehran it wants to try to negotiate. That signaled the move is supported by Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who has the final say on all matters of state and previously dismissed any negotiations.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the US hoped to discuss a number of concerns beyond the nuclear issue, including discussions on Iran’s ballistic missiles, support for proxy networks across the region and the “treatment of their own people.”
“The leadership of Iran at the clerical level does not reflect the people of Iran. I know of no other country where there’s a bigger difference between the people who lead the country and the people who live there,” he told reporters.
Latest updates
Recommended
© 2026 SAUDI RESEARCH & PUBLISHING COMPANY, All Rights Reserved And subject to Terms of Use Agreement.