Turkey's Defence Ministry said its warplanes struck the PKK terror group targets in northern Iraq's Haftanin region on Wednesday, the second such operation launched against the bloody-minded PKK in recent days.
"Our heroic commandos are in Haftanin," the ministry said on Twitter, dubbing the new operation "Claw-Tiger".
Turkish commandos supported by the Air Force, ATAK helicopters, unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and unmanned combat aerial vehicles (UCAVs) have entered the region in an air attack operation.
"In order to neutralise the PKK and other terrorist elements threatening our people and our borders, our Air Force, along with fire-support equipment, helicopters and our commandos, supported by armed and unarmed drones, have mobilised to the region with air operations," the ministry said.
"#Operation Claw-Tiger is being carried out as part of our legitimate defense rights arising from international law-oriented against the PKK and other terrorist elements that have recently attempted increased harassment and attacks on our police station and base areas," the statement added.
Defense Minister Hulusi Akar and the Turkish Armed Forces Command are managing and dispatching the operation from the Army Command Control Center.
The ministry also shared initial scenes of the operation in a video.
The cross-border operation came days after Turkey launched an air operation in the region, which the Defense Ministry said hit suspected PKK targets in several locations in Iraq's north, including Sinjar, and targeted 81 PKK hideouts.
A military official said the operation began with artillery units targeting some 150 suspected PKK positions and was followed by an aerial attack involving F-16s, drones and attack helicopters.
Some of the commandos crossed the border by land while other units were transported by helicopters. The troops had began to enter PKK hideouts in Haftanin, the official said, providing the information on condition of anonymity in line with government rules.
On Monday, the ministry announced the start of Operation Claw-Eagle in northern Iraq, noting that Turkish fighter jets had destroyed caves where terrorists were taking shelter and the caves had collapsed on them.
The operation was being carried out against terrorist bases in Sinjar, Qandil, Karacak, Zap, Avasin-Basyan and Hakurk.
In its more than 30-year terror campaign against Turkey, the PKK-listed as a terrorist organization by Turkey, the US and the European Union-has been responsible for the deaths of nearly 40,000 people, including women, children and infants.
