Turkish Interior Minister Accuses West Of Hypocrisy Amid Strikes In Iraq, Syria - Reports

Turkish Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu accused Western powers on Monday of hypocrisy in relation to Turkey's military operation in northern Iraq and Syria, the Anadolu news agency reported

ANKARA (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 22nd November, 2022) Turkish Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu accused Western powers on Monday of hypocrisy in relation to Turkey's military operation in northern Iraq and Syria, the Anadolu news agency reported.

On Sunday, Ankara conducted an air operation against militant bases of the People's Defense Units (YPG) and the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), groups outlawed in Turkey, in northern Syria and Iraq. According to the Turkish Defense Ministry, a total of 89 targets were destroyed during the operation. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan called the operation a success and admitted the possibility of conducting an additional ground operation soon.

"During the Operation Pence-Kilic (Claw-Sword) hundreds of terrorists were eliminated in Syria and Iraq. At the same time, we witnessed another duplicity of the West, when instead of supporting Ankara, they urged stoppage of the anti-terrorist operation," Soylu was quoted as saying by Anadolu.

Soylu said that Ankara will not let anyone create "a terrorist state" near its borders, according to the report.

The minister also reportedly mentioned a deadly attack in Istanbul, which killed six people, as well as a shelling of two bordering regions of Turkey that Ankara believes were carried out by the PKK and its branches in Syria and Iraq.

"Innocent people were killed on the Istiklal Avenue, and today we bury a young teacher and a child who died as a result of the shelling by terrorists from the Syrian territory," Soylu was quoted as saying by Anadolu.

He added that the Turkish army retaliated with massive airstrikes on "terrorist objects in northern Iraq and Syria," the news outlet reported.

Earlier in the day, US State Department expressed concerns over escalation in the region and "urged Turkey against such operations." Washington has previously supported the YPG-led forces to fight against ISIS (an organization banned in Russia), which led to a deterioration in relations with Turkey.