Turkey says 'neutralized' three PKK leaders in Kurdistan, Iraq

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – Turkish authorities said Friday their military had "neutralized" three Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) leaders in areas inside and around the Kurdistan Region, as they vowed to continue their cross-border operations against the armed group.

Turkish state media reported that the Turkish intelligence service had carried out an operation in "Northern Iraq," a term Ankara uses to describe the Kurdistan Region of Iraq, that resulted in "the neutralization of three leaders" of the PKK.

The report did not list any names but noted that the targets were responsible for PKK activities in Jabal Kara, Qandil Mountains, and the disputed Sinjar (Shingal) district of Nineveh province.

Turkish authorities often use the word "neutralize" in their statements to refer to the surrender, killing, or arrest of members of the PKK, which Ankara, along with the EU, the US, and NATO, considers a "terrorist organization."

Turkish jets on Thursday bombed positions of the Yezidi Protection Units (YBŞ) militia group, which is made up of members of the Yezidi (Ezidi) religious minority group. The YBŞ is seen as a close PKK associate.

Read More: Turkish airstrike targets Yezidi armed group in Iraq’s disputed Sinjar

The PKK has been locked in a decades-long conflict against Ankara over Kurdish rights in Turkey that has led to tens of thousands of deaths on both sides.

The group is headquartered in the Kurdistan Region's Qandil Mountains, mostly in rural areas along the Turkish and Iranian borders.

Officials from both Iraq and the Kurdistan Region have repeatedly called on Turkey and the PKK to take their fight away from areas populated by civilians, thousands of whom have been displaced and suffered damage to their farms, livestock, or other property.

Others have suffered serious injury or even death as a result of skirmishes or Turkish bombardment of suspected PKK positions.