Turkish military responds to PKK attacks: TSK

ANKARA

The outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) targeted a military base with two mortar attacks in southeastern Turkey, the Turkish general staff said in a statement on June 7.

The PKK attacked the Dağlıca military base close to the Iraqi border in Hakkari province at around 12.35 p.m. local time (10.35 GMT) on June 6, the statement said, adding that there were no casualties.

Troops at the base, home to the 7th Border Regiment Command, responded with fire.   

The PKK regularly launches mortar attacks on the base, rarely causing casualties or damage, according to military statements.

The clashes come amid a delicate ceasefire between the PKK and the Turkish military, which has held for over two years as a result of the peace process initiated by the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) with the imprisoned leader of the PKK, Abdullah Öcalan. 

A joint press conference between the government and the Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP), a key stakeholder in the process, was held at the Dolmabahçe Palace in Istanbul on Feb. 28. Deputy Prime Minister Yalçın Akdoğan and HDP deputy Sırrı Süreyya Önder read their own statements, while Önder listed 10 articles summarizing Öcalan’s priorities.