Turkey: Turkish jets pound Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) positions in Iraq on day before election
Turkey’s military bombarded positions of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) in northern Iraq on Saturday, the state-run Anadolu news agency reported.
The bombardment occurred the day before nationwide local elections in Turkey, which present the first opportunity for Turkey’s citizens to express their opinion about the government of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan since he gained vast new powers last June.
Turkish fighter jets pounded Kandil mountain, the base of the PKK in Iraq, as well as in Hakurk and Avasin-Basyan, where the PKK was preparing to attack Turkish border troops, Anadolu said .
Sunday’s elections are occurring during a deep economic recession in the country. In his campaigning, Erdoğan has painted the main Kurdish political party as an ally of the PKK, an autonomy-seeking militant group recognised as terrorist by the United States and European Union.