The ministry said in a statement that the operation, which took place across seven provinces, was carried out to prevent possible attacks on the fourth anniversary of protests during which dozens of people were killed and wounded in violence between police and protesters, Reuters reported.
The Oct. 6-7, 2014 demonstrations were sparked by Kurds’ demand that the government do more to protect the Syrian Kurdish town of Kobani from Islamic State militants.
On Wednesday, seven Turkish soldiers were killed and three others wounded after a roadside bomb in the southeastern province of Batman was detonated by Kurdish fighters, security sources said.
Turkish warplanes and artillery intermittently bombard suspected positions of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) in the Kurdistan Region.
Besides airstrikes, units of the Turkish army have entered 30 kilometers into northern Iraq, according to Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim. On June 21, Yildirim said Turkey had created 11 temporary military bases in northern Iraq.
The three-decade armed struggle by the PKK against the Turkish government flared up again in 2015 after the collapse of a two-year ceasefire and settlement process.
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