Earlier in March, Turkish warplanes bombed camps belonging to the PKK in the north of Iraq. Also in March, the Turkish Air Force bombed at least five PKK targets in different locations in Iraq, with Ankara claiming 67 militants were killed. On December 9, 10 Turkish F-16 fighter jets targeted Kurdish positions in northern Iraq, with the Turkish military saying that its targets were "destroyed in an aerial campaign." In December 2015, Ankara deployed about 150 soldiers and 25 tanks to Iraq's Nineveh province, without asking permission from Baghdad. Ankara argued that its soldiers were sent to northern Iraq to counter a threat from Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS/ISIL) to Turkish military instructors training anti-terrorist forces in the area.
'They know how it's done': Turkey violated Greek airspace 2,244 times in 2014 alone https://t.co/E8zHiWNzp6 pic.twitter.com/kjzEhYrxfi
โ RT (@RT_com) November 25, 2015
Since July 2015, after the two-year truce between Turkey and the Kurds was scrapped, Ankara has delivered regular airstrikes against Kurdish militia in neighboring Iraq, and has also shelled Kurdish settlements in Syria. The PKK is demanding autonomy for Kurds in Turkey's southeast, and is listed as terrorist organization #1 by the Turkish government.
Comment: Erdogan wants anyone who supports groups like the Kurds in their struggle for self-determination to be deemed terrorists. Turkey' activities in northern Iraq show desire for more regime change in Baghdad with NATO help, and could lead to war between the countries.
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