| Operations Claw-Lightning and Thunderbolt | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of theKurdish–Turkish conflict | |||||
| |||||
| Belligerents | |||||
 Kurdistan Region (from 6 June 2021) |  Kurdistan Workers' Party | ||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||
Nechirvan Barzani | Sofi Nurettin †[1] | ||||
| Units involved | |||||
| Strength | |||||
Unknown | Unknown | ||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||
6 killed7 wounded 2 captured[4][5] | 142 killed or captured (per Turkey)[6][7] | ||||
Claw-Lightning and Claw-Thunderbolt (Turkish:Pençe-Şimşek ve Pençe-Yıldırım Operasyonları) wereTurkish Armed Forces cross bordermilitary operations in northernIraq. The operations took place in the Metina, Zap and Avashin-Basyan regions againstKurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) targets, as part of the ongoingKurdish–Turkish conflict.
The operations began on the evening of 23 April 2021, withair andhowitzer strikes targeting PKK positions in NorthernIraq. In the following hours of the strikes Turkish paratroopers and commandos airdropped fromChinook andBlack Hawk helicopters to the points of Metina, Zap and Avashin-Basyan regions. Turkish Defense Ministry announced the "neutralization" of 142 militants and the destruction of 500 targets while announcing 12killed of their own.[2][6][8]
On 6 June 2021, clashes occurred betweenPeshmerga and PKK resulting in the deaths of 5 Peshmerga. On 8 June 2021, 2 Peshmerga were kidnapped by PKK while another one was killed.[4][5]
The operation is known to have impact on civilians, fleeing the operation area.[9]
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