UPDATE 3 - Death toll from YPG/PKK terror attack in southeastern Türkiye rises to 3

UPDATES WITH REMARKS BY TURKISH COMMUNICATIONS DIRECTOR

By Irfan Aydogdu and Fevzi Kemal Karagoz

GAZIANTEP/KILIS, Türkiye (AA) – At least three people were killed in multiple rocket attacks by the terror group YPG/PKK in Türkiye’s southeastern Gaziantep province, the country’s interior minister said Monday.

The mortar shells hit a residential area and injured six people in the Karkamis district, Suleyman Soylu told reporters in the capital Ankara. The injured were transferred to the hospital, he said.

“Unfortunately, according to initial information, three of our citizens, including a child and a teacher, lost their lives,” he added.

Türkiye, he said, will respond to these terror acts in “the strongest way,” adding all necessary steps will be taken in this regard.

A health worker at the scene was also injured in the attack. Mehmet Goren told Anadolu Agency that he was trying to recover an injured person from the rubble when another bomb hit the area.

“The blast flung me into the stairwell. Later, I was brought to the hospital. I think my foot is broken,” he said.

Five rockets hit a residential area near the Karkamis border crossing, Gaziantep Governor Davut Gul said on Twitter, adding that two of the injured were in critical condition.

A high school and two houses as well as a truck were damaged in the attack.

An investigation has been launched into the latest spate of cross-border attacks launched by the terrorist organization.

Separately, PKK terrorists launched three rockets into southeastern Türkiye near the Oncupinar border crossing, according to security sources.

No casualties have been reported so far, sources added.

“PKK/PYD/YPG is now attacking our cities from northern Syria. These attacks show once again that the Western support for this terror group in the name of fighting other terror groups like ISIS is a total failure. You cannot fight terrorists with terrorists. You can only do it through an alliance of countries committed to fighting terror,” Turkish Communications Director Fahrettin Altun said on Twitter.

Material support by the West such as training and providing arms will not prevent Türkiye from fighting terrorism, Altun said, adding that Türkiye will pursue terrorists wherever they might run or hide.

“Our Western allies must think long and hard about their support. They are directly and indirectly trying to destabilize our country. Their support results in loss of innocent Turkish lives. Their strategic arguments are a farce. And this is no way of fighting terrorism,” he said.

He added that the PKK terror group has been fighting Türkiye for more than 40 years, which continues to be a direct threat to the country’s national security.

“The Western policy on Syria has collapsed. The country continues to produce regional terrorism and national security threats to the region. The need for change is urgent but our fight against terror will continue regardless. We will not compromise,” he said.

On Sunday, at least eight security personnel, including seven police officers and one soldier, were injured in a PKK terrorist rocket attack into southeastern Türkiye near the Oncupinar border crossing.

Separately on Sunday, YPG/PKK terrorists in northern Syria fired four rockets into Karkamis. The rockets hit an empty area, and an investigation of the attack was launched.

The attacks came after Türkiye announced last week that it had launched an air operation against the PKK terror group in northern areas of Syria and Iraq, where the terrorist group also has hideouts where they plot and mount attacks against Türkiye.

The operation follows the Nov. 13 terror attack on Istanbul’s crowded Istiklal Avenue that killed six people and left 81 injured.

The Turkish government said the attack was carried out by the terrorist group YPG/PKK.

In its more than 35-year terror campaign against Türkiye, the PKK – listed as a terrorist organization by Türkiye, the US and the EU – has been responsible for the deaths of more than 40,000 people, including women, children and infants. The YPG is the terror group’s Syrian offshoot.

*Writing by Gozde Bayar