Turkish forces “neutralize” senior PKK member in northern Iraq

The Turkish National Intelligence Organization (MIT) has "neutralized" Lokman Ismail, a senior member of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), in an operation in northern Iraq, Anadolu Agency reported on Monday. Ismail, a Syrian national codenamed "Siyar Muhtar," had been active in the PKK for approximately 30 years. According to the report, Ismail received training from Abdullah Ocalan, the jailed head of the PKK, and participated in armed activities in Trkiye from 1996 to 2004. He relocated to the Zap region in northern Iraq in 2004 for further training in PKK camps. Ismail was reportedly responsible for ordering a car bomb attack in 2019 that targeted two vehicles in Turkey's southern Adana province. The MIT identified Ismail's location and carried out a precision strike in northern Iraq near the Turkish border, Anadolu reported, without disclosing the timing of the operation. Turkish authorities frequently use the term "neutralize" to indicate that individuals have either surrendered, been killed, or captured. The PKK is designated as a terrorist organization by Trkiye, the United States, and the European Union, having waged a rebellion against the Turkish government for more than three decades. Since 2019, Trkiye has conducted a series of cross-border military operations into the semi-autonomous Kurdistan region of northern Iraq to target PKK hideouts. Source: The Namibia News Agency