Four Turkish soldiers killed in explosions in Turkey’s Bitlis, Syria’s Afrin
ANKARA – Anadolu Agency
Four Turkish soldiers were killed on March 22 in eastern Turkey and Syria’s northwestern district of Afrin, officials have said.
Three Turkish soldiers were killed and three others were wounded by an explosion during a search operation in Afrin as part of “Operation Olive Branch.”
In a statement, the Turkish General Staff said an improvised explosive blew up and killed three soldiers and injured three others in search operations.
Separately, an explosive — planted by the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) in the eastern province of Bitlis — killed one Turkish soldier and injured another on the evening of March 22, the local governor’s office said in a statement.
Turkey launched “Operation Olive Branch” on Jan. 20 to clear People’s Protection Units (YPG) militants from Afrin. On March 18, the Turkish armed forces and the Free Syrian Army (FSA) declared full control over the city.
Turkey considers YPG to be the Syrian extension of the outlawed PKK.
Military training jet crashed, one soldier killed
Meanwhile, another personnel was killed when a military training aircraft crashed on March 22 in central Turkey, according to the Turkish armed forces.
On its website, the General Staff said an F-16 fighter jet went down in the central Nevşehir province during a training flight.
The jet, which took off at 18:30 p.m. [0330GMT], crashed near Gülşehir district for an unknown reason, it added.
Fire brigades, rescue units, and gendarmerie forces were immediately dispatched to the crash site. The wreckage and body were found at the site.
