Turkey strikes PKK cells, kills five militants

Intensification of violence in southeast Turkey between government and Kurdish rebels

Turkish Armed Forces (TSK) struck Kurdish insurgents in northern Iraq and southeastern Turkey on Friday, killing five.

TSK fighter jets bombed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) targets in Iraqi Kurdistan and ground forces clashed with Kurdish fighters near the city of Kozluk, according to the Turkish newspaper Daily Zaman.

[mappress mapid=”138″]

The assault is the latest in a renewed Turkish campaign against the PKK, a terrorist organization according to Turkey, the EU, and US.

In October 2011, PKK commandos attacked Turkish troops near the Iraqi border, killing 24 soldiers in the deadliest day for the TSK since 1993. Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan retaliated by striking PKK forces in northern Iraq.

A domestic crackdown against perceived Kurdish sympathizers and political groups has escalated. Turkish authorities conducted a spate of arrests in January targeting members of the Peace and Democracy Party (BDP), a pro-Kurdish party that holds 29 seats in the 550-member Turkish legislature.

Military action has replaced diplomatic procedures in Turkey’s strategy with the Kurds. Peace talks, which lasted four years, broke down in 2004, and deadly attacks, reprisals, and ceasefires resumed.

Public opinion stands behind the Erdogan administration’s use of force. The rise in PKK violence in the past year reinforced public support for a tough stance against the Kurds.

According to a poll conducted by Kadir Has University and published in The Journal of Turkish Weekly, more than 44% of Turks — the plurality — support a military solution to Turkey’s Kurdish problem.

Since its beginning in 1984, the conflict between the PKK and the Turkish government has claimed more than 40,000 lives. Both sides accuse one another of committing atrocities.

Most recently, Turkish planes mistakenly bombed civilian smuggling goods into Turkey in December, killing 34, including 17 children.