Turkish airstrikes target Kurdish militia in Syria after Ankara suicide bomb attack

DAMASCUS, Oct. 6 (Xinhua) -- Turkish drones and fighter jets carried out a series of airstrikes targeting Kurdish militia positions in northern and eastern Syria on Thursday, hitting 24 targets and causing 15 casualties among the Kurdish fighters, a war monitor reported.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said that the Turkish air force carried out 24 airstrikes on Kurdish sites -- three by fighter jets and 21 by drones.

It added that the attacks targeted critical infrastructure, including oil, electricity, and water stations, causing significant damage to the affected facilities.

The Syrian Arab News Agency said that two electricity plants and one water station went out of service in the northeastern province of Al-Hasakah as a result of the Turkish shelling.

The latest escalation follows threats issued by Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan, who warned of an expanded cross-border operation in Syria and Iraq against Kurdish fighters after a suicide bomb rattled the Turkish capital Ankara, injuring two police officers.

The Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) claimed responsibility for the bomb attack, marking the first time the group had claimed an attack in Ankara since 2016. Turkish intelligence officials suggested that the two assailants had received training in Syria.

The PKK has been rebelling against the Turkish government for more than three decades. Türkiye sees the Syrian Kurdish Protection Units (YPG) as the Syrian branch of the PKK.

"From now on, all PKK/YPG infrastructure, superstructure facilities, and energy facilities in Iraq and Syria are legitimate targets of our security forces," Fidan announced in a news conference on Wednesday.

As Thursday saw Turkish drones conducting airstrikes on YPG installations in northeast Syria, a Turkish unmanned drone was shot down by a U.S. F-16 fighter jet in proximity to U.S. troops, reflecting the volatile situation in that region.