Syrian Kurds protest against Türkiye and in solidarity with the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), in the Kurdish-held city of Qamishli, on Nov 13, 2022. (DELIL SOULEIMAN / AFP)
ANKARA – Türkiye plans to pursue targets in northern Syria after it completes a cross-border operation against outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) militants in Iraq, a senior official said on Tuesday, after a deadly weekend bomb in Istanbul.
The government has blamed Kurdish militants for the blast on Istanbul's Istiklal Avenue on Sunday that killed six people and injured more than 80.
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Threats posed by Kurdish militants or Islamic State on Türkiye are unacceptable, the official said, adding Ankara will clear threats along its southern border "one way or another."
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Türkiye has conducted three incursions in northern Syria against the Syrian Kurdish YPG militia, which it says is a wing of the PKK. The PKK is deemed a terrorist group by Türkiye, the United States and the European Union.