Screenshot
On May 4th, the Turkish Ministry of National Defense has published videos of airstrikes on PKK terrorist targets in northern Iraq, where the Turkish Air Force is involved in two anti-terrorist operations Pençe-Şimşek and Pençe-Yıldırım.
Irak kuzeyinde devam eden Pençe-Şimşek ve Pençe-Yıldırım operasyonları kapsamında belirlenen terörist mevzileri Hava Kuvvetlerimiz tarafından etkili şekilde vurularak imha ediliyor.#MSB #TSK pic.twitter.com/xsXpzObKg3
— T.C. Millî Savunma Bakanlığı (@tcsavunma) May 3, 2021
“3 PKK / YPG terrorist Commandos who opened fire in the Euphrates Shield area with machine guns were neutralized by the response of our commandos. A shelter belonging to terrorists was also destroyed by our fire support vehicles.” – the statement from May 4th reads.
Several videos showing Turkish soldiers removing the bodies of dead Kurdish fighters from a PKK hideout in northern Iraq have emerged online. According to the Turkish reports, in total, the remains of 18 members of the PKK were found in the cave.
“Girilemez” denilen inlere girmeye, terörü kaynağında kurutmaya kararlıyız! #PençeŞimşekPençeYıldırım pic.twitter.com/trfxzjJtH3
— T.C. Millî Savunma Bakanlığı (@tcsavunma) May 4, 2021
A video of the trophies taken during the operation against the PKK in northern Iraq was released. Rifles, machine guns, mortar shells, RPG shots and other ammunition were captured by the Turkish military. The shelter was reportedly destroyed.
On the other side, the Kurds also report on their military successes against the Turks. A video of the PKK attack in the Avasin region, which took place on April 26, was released online. According to the statements, at least 4 Turkish soldiers were killed in the attack. The footage shows Kurdish soldiers using American M16A4 rifles and AT4 grenade launchers.
The PKK had claimed the killing of more than 120 Turkish soldiers, however, these claims are rather far to be true.
Another video reportedly shows Kurdish military activity in the Zab Mountains region of northern Iraq.
On April 29, the PKK announced that his fighters had attacked a secret Turkish base near the village of Sheladize in the Iraqi Kurdistan Region.