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An expected Turkish military operation against the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) in northern Iraqi will be entitled Operation Tigris Shield, the Turkish media reports.
According to reports, the Turkish Armed Forces are currently preparing to launch the widely expected operation, which will target the PKK in the area of Sinjar.
HINT: The PKK is a Kurdish armed separatist group operating in southern Turkey, northern Iraq and northern Syria. The PKK has been for a long time waging militancy against the Turkish state and de-facto seeks to establish an independent Kurdish state, which would include territories of Turkey, Syria and Iraq.
Ankara also describes the Kurdish People’s Protection Units (YPG) operating in Syria as a local branch of the PKK.
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has repeatedly vowed to extend the Turkish military operation against Kurdish armed groups into eastern Syria [mostly Manbij] and northern Iraq [Sinjar].
Turkey has even noticed the Iraqi government in Baghdad that its forces would attack the PKK camp on Sinjar Mount Iraq takes action against the group.
“If you are going to handle this, you do it,” Erdogan said in remarks directed at Iraq. “If you can’t handle it, then we may suddenly enter Sinjar one night and clear out the PKKs there.”
Earlier, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu claimed that Turkish and Iraqi forces would carry out a joint military operation against the PKK in northern Iraq. According to him, this operation may be launched after Iraqi elections set for May 12.
On March 18, the Turkish Army captured the key YPG stronghold in northwestern Syria – the city of Afrin. Since then, it and Turkish-backed militant groups have been consolidating their gains in the Afrin area.
