Turkey [Ankara], July 7: Five Turkish soldiers died in Iraq after being exposed to methane gas inside a cave, the Turkish
Defence Ministry announced on the platform X on
Sunday.
A total of 19 soldiers entered the cave in northern Iraq in search of the remains of a soldier killed there in 2022, when they were exposed to the escaping gas, the ministry said.
Turkiye's military presence in Iraq is directed against the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), which has its headquarters in the Kandil Mountains in the region.
The conflict between Turkiye and the Kurdish militant group, which is listed as a terrorist organization in the European Union and the United States, is one of the longest-running armed conflicts of the present day.
For decades, the Kurdish national movement has sought to establish an independent country in areas with large Kurdish populations, which include parts of Turkiye, Iran, Iraq and Syria.
The PKK announced its dissolution in May, following a call from its founder, Abdullah Öcalan, who is imprisoned in Turkiye.
Source: Qatar Tribune
