http://www.chinaview.cn 2008-02-20 23:21:28
ANKARA, Feb. 20 (Xinhua) -- Turkish warplanes launched a strike against the targets of the outlawed Kurdish Workers' Party (PKK)in northern Iraq on Wednesday, the semi-official Anatolia news agency reported.
Turkish jets took off at noon from the air base in southeastern Turkish province of Diyarbakir and headed to Iraqi border, the report said, adding that the warplanes returned to the military base after sometime.
Meanwhile, Turkish military continues operations against the PKK in southeastern Turkey, mainly in Cudi and Kupeli regions of Sirnak province.
The U.S. State Department spokesman Sean McCormack said on Tuesday that his country is "continuing to work with the Turkish government and Turkish military to provide the best possible intelligence so that the terrorist group, PKK, operating in Iraqi territory can be dealt with."
The U.S. has said the PKK is a threat to Turkey, Iraq and the United States, and has voiced support for Turkey to launch attacks on PKK targets in northern Iraq.
The Turkish military has launched several cross-border attacks to fight separatist PKK rebels, who use northern Iraq as a launch pad for attacks against Turkey.
The PKK, listed by the United States and Turkey as a terrorist group, took up arms against Turkey in 1984 with the aim of creating an ethnic homeland in the southeast of the country. More than 30,000 people have been killed in the over-two-decade conflict.
