Turkey: Defense, interior chiefs visit opposition head

By Emin Avundukluoglu

ANKARA (AA) - Turkey's defense and interior ministers on Tuesday visited the country's main opposition leader in the wake of the terrorist group PKK’s massacre of 13 Turkish citizens over the weekend.

Defense Minister Hulusi Akar and Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu briefed Republican People's Party (CHP) leader Kemal Kilicdaroglu on Turkey’s anti-terror offensive Operation Claw-Eagle 2 in Gara in Iraq.

The closed-door meeting lasted 50 minutes.

On Sunday, Kilicdaroglu issued a statement condemning the massacre, saying in part: "I wish Allah's mercy on our innocent citizens abducted and killed by the treacherous terror group."

Akar and Soylu later Tuesday are set to address parliament’s General Assembly on the anti-terror operation.

The bodies of the 13 Turkish citizens were found during the operation in northern Iraq, Akar said on Sunday.

Turkish forces launched Operation Claw-Eagle 2 on Feb. 10 to prevent the PKK and other terror groups from re-establishing positions used to carry out cross-border terror attacks on Turkey.

Operations Claw-Tiger and Claw-Eagle were initiated last June to ensure the safety of Turkey's people and borders.

In its more than 30-year terror campaign against Turkey, the PKK – listed as a terrorist organization by Turkey, the US, and EU – has been responsible for the deaths of 40,000 people, including women, children, and infants.