PPK Member, 2 Injured in Turkish Attack in Iraq

On Monday, the Counter-Terrorism Unit of the Kurdistan Region of Iraq reported that a Turkish drone strike killed one member of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) and injured two others.

The airstrike targeted a refugee camp in the Makhmour district, located between Nineveh and Erbil. According to reports, the drone strike hit a gathering of PKK members within the camp early in the morning.

The Makhmour camp houses hundreds of families who have been displaced from Turkey for years. Turkey accuses the PKK of using the camp as a base to train fighters and launch attacks within Turkish territory.

This incident follows a similar attack on August 23, when a Turkish drone targeted a vehicle in Sulaymaniyah, killing three individuals, including a PKK official. The vehicle was destroyed in that attack.

Turkey has long conducted operations against PKK fighters and Syrian Kurdish People’s Protection Units (YPG) in both Iraq and Syria, labeling both groups as terrorist organizations.

In August, Turkey announced a military cooperation agreement with Iraq to establish joint training and command centers aimed at combating Kurdish separatists. Iraq has also banned the PKK as a political party.

Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan, after a meeting with Iraqi counterpart Fouad Hussein in Ankara, emphasized that the cooperation would be elevated to the highest level through the joint command and training centers established under this agreement.

The PKK has maintained a presence in Iraq’s autonomous Kurdistan Region, where Turkish military bases have been established for 25 years.

The PKK has been waging an armed insurgency against the Turkish government since 1984 and is classified as a terrorist organization by Turkey and its Western allies.