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Turkey strikes Kurdish militant targets in Syria and Ireland

Turkey strikes Kurdish militant targets in Syria and Ireland

ANKARA, Turkey (AP) — Turkey struck suspected Kurdish militant targets in Syria and Iraq for a second day on Thursday, following an attack on the facilities of a major defense company that left at least five people dead, the state news agency reported.

The National Intelligence Agency targeted several “strategic points” used by the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) or Syrian Kurdish militias affiliated with the militants, Anadolu Agency reported. The report stated that the targets included military, intelligence, energy and infrastructure facilities and ammunition depots. A security official said armed drones were used in Thursday’s attacks.

On Wednesday, Turkish air forces launched airstrikes on similar targets in northern Syria and northern Iraq, hours after government officials blamed the PKK for a deadly attack on the headquarters of aerospace and defense company TUSAS. The defense ministry said more than 30 targets were destroyed in the airstrike.

According to reports, it was stated that the attackers (a man and a woman) came to the TAI building on the outskirts of Ankara in a taxi they seized after killing the driver. Those who detonated the explosive with rifles and opened fire killed four people at TAI, including a security personnel and a mechanical engineer.

The Minister of Internal Affairs said that security teams were dispatched as soon as the attack started around 15.30. Two attackers were killed and more than 20 people were injured in the attack.

There has been no statement yet from the PKK regarding the attack and Turkish air strikes.

TAI carries out the design, production and assembly of civil and military aircraft, unmanned aerial vehicles and other defense industry and space systems. Defense systems are seen as key to Turkey gaining the upper hand in the fight against Kurdish militants.

The attack occurred a day after the leader of Turkey’s far-right nationalist party, which is allied with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, raised the possibility that the detained leader of the PKK could be granted parole if he renounces violence and disbands his organisation.

Abdullah Öcalan’s group is fighting for autonomy in southeastern Turkey in a conflict that has killed tens of thousands of people since the 1980s. It is considered a terrorist organization by Türkiye and its Western allies.