Iraq Summons Turkish Envoy over Airstrikes
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Iraq’s foreign ministry summoned Turkey’s ambassador in Baghdad to protest over “repeated airspace violations”, after Turkish warplanes earlier carried out strikes against Kurdish militants in northern Iraq.
On Friday, the Turkish military said on Twitter it had killed eight militants from the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) in airstrikes targeting the Zap, Hakurk and Haftanin regions of northern Iraq.
Turkey has regularly carried out airstrikes on PKK bases in northern Iraq, as President Tayyip Erdogan pursues his stated aim of ending the militant group’s presence near Turkey’s borders. Ankara has also threatened to launch a ground offensive in northern Iraq.
But Iraq’s foreign ministry said the airstrikes were unacceptable “on all levels” and violated its sovereignty and the security of its citizens.
“The Ministry denounces the actions of Turkish aircraft that violate Iraqi airspace and target several sites... in northern Iraq, which caused loss of life and property,” it said in a statement.
