Turkish commandos storm cave, capture 4 PKK terrorists in northern Iraq

Turkish commandos captured at least four PKK terrorists from a cave they stormed in northern Iraq, military sources said on Saturday.

As part of the ongoing Pence-Yildirim (Claw-Thunder) Operation, Turkish commandos stormed the cave on a hill of 1,917 meters (6,289 feet) height in the Avasin area, sources in the country’s National Defense Ministry said.

The terrorists immediately surrendered after realizing they have nowhere to flee as the commandos landed by helicopter at their hideout, they added.

According to the sources, the commandos carried out a thorough search of the cave, which had numerous rooms, and seized arms and ammunition, including two anti-aircraft machine guns, seven AK-47 rifles among 12 rifles, one M-16 and one sniper rifle, two PKM machine guns aka Bixi, two rocket launchers, and a large quantity of ammunition for these weapons.

The PKK terror group often hides out in northern Iraq, just across Turkey's southern border, to plot terror attacks in Turkey.

The Pence operations are a series of offensives Turkey has carried out since 2019 against terrorist organizations in northern Iraq, particularly the PKK.

Operations Pence-Kaplan and Pence-Kartal were initiated in June last year, while Pence-Simsek and Pence-Yildirim were launched this April in Iraq's Metina and Avasin-Basyan regions.

In its more than 35-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 at least 40,000 people, including women, children, and infants. The YPG is PKK's Syrian offshoot.