The Turkish Armed Forces has released details of a 40-day air and land operation on PKK’s mountainous bases in Turkey’s southeastern Hakkari province.
According to local army sources, the operation–named after Staff Lt. Col. Ilker Celikcan–was launched on Sep. 27, World Bulletin reported.
Celickcan–killed in action in Hakkari on Sep. 7–has been the highest-ranking Turkish soldier to die in recent renewed fighting with the PKK.
The recent operation targeted the area from Buzul Mount and Ikiyaka Mountains to Doski Valley in Yuksekova district, where the PKK aimed to declare a “safe zone” and stronghold for itself.
Military sources maintained that during the solution process, which began early 2013, PKK’s forces dug the mountains with drilling machines and placed Russian-made DShK anti-aircraft guns, creating several shelters and positions for them.
The area is of strategic importance as Daglica Village is the sole access point in the region, and Oramar Hill is a fortified place overlooking the Daglica Border Battalion, Keri Hill and Pey Hill Border Posts.
During the operation that lasted till Nov. 5, Turkish soldiers thoroughly searched the mountains and valleys and reached the mountainous places that the PKK called “impossible to climb”. The soldiers destroyed the positions, shelters and caves used by PKK.
