According to Anadolu news agency, Turkish jets hit eight targets in northern Iraq, destroying shelters, hideouts and arsenals, belonging to militants, who were allegedly preparing to attack border posts.
The airstrikes, that have yet to be commented on by Baghdad, have reportedly been carried out in Iraqi Zap, Avasin, Basyan, and Hakurk regions.
It hasn't been immediately clear to which group the militants, who were targeted, belonged, however, the strikes took place amid the Afrin operation launched on January 20 in Syria. The area is controlled by the Syrian Democratic Forces-affiliated and US-backed YPG militias, which Ankara considers to be linked with the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), which has been waging an armed conflict in Turkey seeking autonomy and equal rights for the Kurds in the country.
READ MORE: Turkey Not to Limit Anti-Terrorist Op to Syria, Ready to Fight in Iraq — Ankara
The Turkish military campaign in Afrin and nearby regions was launched after the US had announced its plans to train a 30,000-strong border force in northern Syria mostly from YPG fighters, which are considered as terrorists by Ankara. Washington's move was harshly criticized by Turkey, with President Erdogan threatening to "strangle" the forming "terrorist army." Within a week after the announcement, Ankara launched an offensive in Syria's Kurdish enclave of Afrin code-named Olive Branch and aimed at eliminating terrorists in the region.
