Screen grab from the attack video.
On April 29, the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) announced that his fighters had attacked a secret Turkish base near the village of Sheladize in the Iraqi Kurdistan Region.
PKK fighters targeted two M60 battle tanks, which were parked in the base, with anti-tank guided missiles. The Kurdish guerrilla group released a video of the attack that took place on April 27. Both tanks received direct hits.
According to a statement by the PKK, three Turkish service members were killed and five others were wounded in the attack on Sheladize base.
“The Turkish state fabricated reports about the operation,” the group said in the statement referring to a recent announcement by the Turkish Ministry of National Defense which acknowledged the death of a single soldier and the injury of two others only.
In a separate statement, the PKK claimed that its fighters killed 21 Turkish service members in a series of operations between April 27 and 29.
Last week, the Turkish military launched a large ground and aerial operation, codenamed “Claw-Lightning,” against the PKK in the Kurdistan Region. According to the Ministry of National Defense, 42 Kurdish fighters have been naturalized, so far.
Irak kuzeyindeki Metina ve Avaşin-Basyan bölgelerinde icra edilen Pençe-Şimşek ve Pençe-Yıldırım operasyonları kapsamında tespit edilen 5 PKK’lı terörist SİHA’larımız ile etkisiz hâle getirildi. Etkisiz hâle getirilen terörist sayısı 42’ye yükseldi.#MSB #TSK pic.twitter.com/3YFziLM2Y2
— T.C. Millî Savunma Bakanlığı (@tcsavunma) April 29, 2021
Metina ve Avaşin-Basyan bölgelerinde girilmedik mağara, bakılmadık terör ini kalmayacak! Kahraman Komandolarımız, gece-gündüz demeden teröristlerin izini sürmeye, terör inlerini tespit ederek imha etmeye devam ediyor.https://t.co/grPewlVRQP#MSB #TSK pic.twitter.com/JQ2NSL5Z77
— T.C. Millî Savunma Bakanlığı (@tcsavunma) April 29, 2021
The PKK’s attack on Sheladize base indicates that the Turkish operation is not going so well. The Kurdish group is still moving freely in the Kurdistan Region.
