Turkey strikes 9 Kurdish militant targets in northern IraqJune 24, 2012 - 17:25 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - Turkey said on Sunday, June 24 it had carried out air strikes on nine Kurdish militant targets in northern Iraq between June 22-24, days after severe clashes on the other side of the border, Reuters reported. The Turkish military said in a statement that most of the targets were in the Qandil region and were hideouts and caves belonging to Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) militants. It said all its planes had returned safely to their bases. Turkish soldiers and Kurdish militants clashed last week in one the most intense battles this year of the separatist conflict, with 26 combatants killed in fighting at army outposts in southeast Turkey, officials and security sources said. Up to 100 fighters from the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) launched simultaneous dawn attacks on three military observation points in Hakkari province near Turkey's mountainous border with Iraq, killing eight soldiers and wounding 19, the sources said. Masoud Barzani, president of the Iraqi Kurdish region, criticized Turkey's air strikes, saying that a peaceful solution was the only answer. "It is unfortunate that we are seeing this kind of deterioration and we are against the operations that are carried out inside Turkey or the air raids that are carried out by Turkey in areas in Iraqi Kurdistan," Barzani told a news conference in the Iraqi Kurdish capital Arbil on Sunday. The oil-producing autonomous region of Kurdistan is a potential flashpoint for tensions among ethnic Kurds, Turkmen and Iraqi Arabs. Top stories Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev arrived in Moscow on April 22 to hold talks with Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin. Authorities said a total of 192 Azerbaijani troops were killed and 511 were wounded during Azerbaijan’s offensive. In 2023, the Azerbaijani government will increase the country’s defense budget by more than 1.1 billion manats ($650 million). The bill, published on Monday, is designed to "eliminate the shortcomings of an unreasonably broad interpretation of the key concept of "compatriot". Partner news | Ameriabank's Trade Finance portfolio enriched with four prestigious awards from EBRD and IFC Ameriabank received the awards from international financial institutions in recognition of its trade finance operations. Armenian Economy Minister to make trip to UAE May 20-22 A delegation led by Minister of Economy Gevorg Papoyan will travel to the UAE capital of Abu Dhabi on May 20-22 Armenia Security Council chief traveling to Qatar Secretary of the Security Council of Armenia Armen Grigoryan will travel on a working visit to Qatar. Pillars installed in Armenian border village of Kirants In the Armenian village of Kirants, three border markers have been installed, and border guards stand next to them. |