Turkey launched airstrikes against suspected Kurdish militant targets in Syria and Iraq after blaming the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) for a deadly attack on Turkey’s national aerospace headquarters on Wednesday, which killed five people. However, Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) said on Thursday that Turkish retaliatory airstrikes killed 12 civilians in north-east Syria.
According to Reuters, Turkey’s Ministry of Defense announced that PKK targets in northern Iraq and Syria were struck in retaliation for the assault on an aviation facility in the capital. The attack, which took place at the headquarters of Turkey’s Aerospace Industries, left five people dead and 22 injured. The Turkish government labeled it a “terrorist act.”
Turkish Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya said that the attack was “very likely” carried out by the PKK. He added that two attackers were killed in a counter-operation at the scene.
While investigations are ongoing, and evidence is being collected to confirm the identity of the attackers, Yerlikaya expressed suspicion due to the tactics used, which he said resemble those of the PKK.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, who is currently attending the BRICS summit in Kazan, Russia, condemned the attack in a statement. The United States, NATO, and the European Union have also condemned the assault on Turkey’s defense facility.
Shortly after the Ankara incident, Turkey’s Defense Ministry said, “An air operation was carried out against terrorist targets in the north of Iraq and Syria,” adding that 32 PKK-affiliated targets were destroyed in the strikes.
Civilian Casualties in Turkish Strikes
Meanwhile, the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) reported that 12 civilians, including two children, were killed, and 25 others were wounded in Turkish airstrikes in northeastern Syria.
The SDF accused Turkey of indiscriminately targeting civilian areas under the guise of anti-terrorism operations. “This new wave of Turkish attacks on northern and eastern Syria has killed 12 civilians, including two children, and wounded 25 others,” the SDF said, calling for international condemnation.
“In addition to populated areas, Turkish warplanes and drones targeted bakeries, power stations, oil facilities, and checkpoints manned by the Kurdish Internal Security Force,” the SDF said, condemning the strikes as attacks on civilian infrastructure.
Human rights organizations have expressed concern over the Turkish airstrikes, fearing the ongoing conflict is disproportionately affecting civilians, many of whom are already living in precarious conditions following years of war with ISIS.
Turkey frequently conducts military operations in Iraq and Syria, targeting locations believed to be associated with the PKK, a Kurdish separatist group that has waged an insurgency against the Turkish state since the 1980s. The decades-long conflict has claimed thousands of lives.
The PKK, which seeks Kurdish autonomy, is considered a terrorist organization by Turkey, the U.S., and the European Union. The Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF)—closely associated with the PKK—played a crucial role in defeating ISIS in Syria.