Türkiye determined to eradicate terrorism in Iraq, Syria

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has chaired a security meeting at the Dolmabahce Presidential Office in Istanbul after nine Turkish soldiers were killed in a terrorist attack in northern Iraq.

Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan, Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya, National Defence Minister Yasar Guler, Chief of the Turkish General Staff Metin Gurak, National Intelligence Organization (MIT) chief Ibrahim Kalin, Communications Director Fahrettin Altun, and Spokesperson and Chief Advisor to the President of Türkiye Akif Cagatay Kilic attended the meeting, Türkiye's Communications Directorate said in a statement on Saturday.

During the meeting of top Turkish officials, Türkiye's counterterrorism strategies, particularly in response to the 'treacherous' terrorist attack on Friday in the Operation Claw-Lock zone in northern Iraq and the steps to be taken to combat terrorism were assessed, said the statement.

As the meeting concluded, it affirmed the decisive determination to continue the relentless struggle against the PKK/YPG/KCK terrorist organisation and its supporters under a strategy to prevent and destroy threats to the country's survival at their source.

45 terrorists neutralised in northern Iraq and Syria

Following the heinous attack, Turkish anti-terror operations resulted in the neutralisation of 45 terrorists, including 36 in northern Iraq and nine in northern Syria, the statement expressed.

The officials emphasised that these operations would persist until the complete eradication of terrorism in Iraq and Syria, it declared as a result of the meeting.

The terror group PKK/YPG/KCK incurred significant losses as Türkiye continues successful cross-border operations, it said.

As the terrorist organisation faces increasing pressure in Syria and Iraq, attempts to revive the group have gained momentum, it added.

'No terrorist state along our southern borders'

"Under no circumstances, we will allow the establishment of a 'terrorist state' along our southern borders," the statement confirmed.

The Communications Directorate also reiterated in the statement that "Within the framework of our right to self-defence and bilateral agreements, wherever there is a terrorist threat, camp, shelter, formation or cluster, it is our main priority to destroy it permanently, regardless of who is behind it."

Türkiye launched Operation Claw-Lock in April 2022 to target the PKK terror organisation's hideouts in Iraq's northern Metina, Zap and Avasin-Basyan regions near the Turkish border.

It was preceded by Operations Claw-Tiger and Claw-Eagle launched in 2020 to root out terrorists hiding out in northern Iraq and plotting cross-border attacks in Türkiye.

In its more than 35-year terror campaign against Türkiye, the PKK —listed as a terrorist organisation by Türkiye, the US and the European Union— has been responsible for the deaths of more than 40,000 people, including women children and infants.