Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Monday vowed to do “whatever necessary” in Turkey’s fight against Kurdish forces, with no end in sight to a two-week cycle of violence.
“Turkey will do whatever necessary to defend itself,” he was quoted as telling reporters on his presidential jet, Middle East Online reported.
With attacks suspected to be carried out by Kurdistan Workers’ Party members on security forces in reprisal for Turkish bombing raids, Erdogan denied there would be any return to the 1990s when the group’s separatist insurgency was at its peak.
“I don’t believe that. That’s impossible. Maybe those who say this want to return to the 1990s,” he said, quoted by the Sabah daily and other newspapers.
Erdogan and Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu on Monday met top military commanders at Turkey’s Supreme Military Council, in a closed-door meeting planned to last three days.
Turkish Soldiers Killed in Mine Blast
At least two soldiers were killed on Tuesday in southeast Turkey when a mine exploded in an attack that security sources blamed on PKK forces.
The mine was detonated by remote-control as a military convoy passed in the Arakoy region of Sirnak Province bordering Iraq and Syria, sources said.
Local media reported a third soldier was killed in the attack. The explosion triggered clashes between Turkish soldiers and PKK fighters, according to official Anatolia news agency.
