MESOP : FINAL WORDS ? PKK strikes will continue until group lays down weapon: Turkish FM

Turkey Foreign Minister Mehmet Cavusoglu said Turkey will continue military operations against the Kurdistan Workers’’ Party (PKK) targets in northern Iraq and southeastern Turkey until the militants lay down their weapons.

The government says it launched the action against the PKK in response to an escalation in attacks on members of the security forces. Cavusoglu said 61 soldiers and police officers have been killed by the group in recent months and the military action would continue until it laid down its weapons, Zaman daily reported.Critics say Turkey is using what it calls its “synchronized war on terror,” including its greater role in the U.S.-led coalition against IS, as a cover to attack the PKK and try to stem Kurdish political and territorial ambitions. Ankara has denied those accusations.Diplomatic sources told Reuters on Aug. 21 a second group of rebel fighters trained in Turkey by the U.S.-led coalition could be deployed to Syria within weeks as part of the strategy to push back IS. www.mesop.de