Operation Martyr Yalçın

Operation Martyr Yalçın (Şehit Yalçın Operasyonu) is a currently ongoing military operation conducted by the Turkish Air Force against Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) positions in Northern Iraq and Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) positions in Syria. The operation began in the early hours of 24 July, a day after ISIL militants attacked a Turkish military position in the Turkish border town of Elbeyli in Kilis Province, killing one soldier and injuring two others. The operation is named after the soldier killed in the initial attack, Yalçın Nane.

The operation has since involved three waves of airstrikes against ISIL positions in Syria and two waves of airstrikes against the PKK positions in Northern Iraq. Airstrikes were launched by F-16 fighter jets taking off from Diyarbakır and İncirlik Air Base on 24 July and 25 July. It was reported that 35 ISIL militants had been killed in the first wave after footage from the fighter jets and unmanned aircraft were analysed, while the airstrikes in Northern Iraq were confirmed to have killed a high-ranking PKK militant and were alleged to have killed the PKK commander Murat Karayılan.

The airstrikes are the first to have been conducted by Turkey against ISIL, bearing international significance due to Turkey's previously internationally criticised policy of inaction against (and sometimes cooperation with) ISIL in the past. The strikes against the PKK were conducted despite an ongoing solution process between the Turkish government and the PKK, resulting in an increase in violence in the mainly Kurdish southeast of Turkey. In conjunction to the airstrikes, large-scale domestic operations were conducted by the police and Gendarmerie in over 22 Turkish provinces. The airstrikes have been referred to as a 'major policy shift' and a 'game changer' in the global military intervention against ISIL.

Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK)
The conflict between the Turkish government and Kurdish separatists has been ongoing for over 40 years, with a ceasefire in late 2012 marking the beginning of a 'solution process' between the government and the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) militant organisation. The ceasefire and negotiations have continued despite numerous infringements and violations on both sides.

Following the 2015 Suruç bombing which targeted members of a group sympathetic to the Kurdish movement, PKK militants killed two policemen in the town of Ceylanpınar, Şanlıurfa Province, in an act of retaliation against collaboration between Turkey and ISIL. PKK militants also attacked a military base in Adıyaman, killing another soldier. Much of the airstrikes have been successful in hitting PKK populated areas, however many civilians have been killed as a result of the strikes. On 10 August 2015, a Turkish Air Force airstrike occurred near a U.S. Special Forces training site made for the purpose of training Kurdish Peshmerga fighters combating ISIL.

Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL)
Before the operation, the Turkish government had pursued an internationally criticised policy of inaction against ISIL, opting out of the anti-ISIL coalition and refusing to allow the United States to use the strategic İncirlik Air Base for airstrikes against ISIL unless they also targeted the forces of Bashar Al Assad. The Turkish policy of inaction contributed to the breakout of deadly riots in Northern Kurdistan, in protest against the government's refusal to intervene in ISIL's siege of Kobanî. Turkey's policy of inaction was also thought to be a contributing factor to Turkey's failure to win a seat in the United Nations Security Council in the 2014 Security Council election. Kurds and the Turkish opposition have also accused the government of actively supporting ISIL.

On 20 July 2015, a bombing in the Turkish district of Suruç, allegedly perpetrated by the ISIL-linked Dokumacılar group, killed 32 young activists and injured over 100. On 23 July, ISIL militants attacked Turkish military positions, killing one soldier and injuring two others. This was largely seen as a casus belli, which resulted in Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu taking the decision to begin active air operations against PKK and ISIL positions south of Turkey's border.

First wave
At 03:12 on 24 July, four F-16 fighter jets took off from Diyarbakır's 8th main airbase command, targeting ISIL. The operation was named after the soldier killed by ISIL in the attack on Elbeyli, Yalçın Nane. The jets used guided missiles to bomb two ISIL headquarters and one ISIL gathering point in Syria. Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu claimed 100% accuracy. The jets bombed the sites without entering Syrian airspace, and the Syrian government was informed of the attack, according to Turkish officials. The operation took 1 hour and 12 minutes. It was reported that 35 ISIL militants had been killed during the operation.

Second wave
On the evening of 24 July, over 20 fighter jets took off from Diyarbakır at around 22:30 local time, targeting both Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) targets in Northern Iraq and ISIL targets in Syria. Three ISIL targets were reported to have been struck. The airstrikes were heavily criticised by the PKK, which accused the government of ending the Solution process.

Attack on Diyarbakır F-16s
At around 8pm local time on 24 July, attackers of unknown origin fired on F-16 fighter jets in Diyarbakır's main Air Base while they were taking off. As a result, police officers and soldiers secured the area while the jets continued to conduct their operation. The jets returned to their hangars after they returned. The perpetrators could not be identified.

Third wave
On 25 July, Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu announced that he had given the order to carry out a third wave air operation against ISIL targets, alongside a second wave in Iraq against the PKK. Davutoğlu called the airstrikes a part of a broad 'process' and gave support to the main opposition Republican People's Party's call for an extraordinary convention of the Grand National Assembly, which was in recess.

The third wave began at around 10:20 local time on 25 July, with 70 F-16 fighter jets taking off from Diyarbakır to strike both PKK targets in Northern Iraq and ISIL targets in Syria. The jets attacking ISIL positions were reported to have violated Syrian airspace this time, bringing identified ISIL targets under heavy bombardment. Activity was also reported at İncirlik Air Base, while unmanned drones taking off from Batman Air Base assessed the damage to PKK targets.

PKK targets
The operations were heavily directed towards the PKK camps in Northern Iraq, targeting over 400 positions. The third wave itself was conducted in three different waves, with close to 70 fighter jets taking part in the first two and 25 taking part in the third. The targets encompassed over 300 kilometres, with many of the targets being identified as the PKK's main training and storage camps. The PKK reported that a senior official of the PKK had been killed while three other militants had been injured. It was also alleged that the PKK's commander Murat Karayılan was killed during the airstrikes.

Other shelling
On 24 July, Turkish tanks reportedly bombarded a village west of Kobani resulting in four FSA fighters being injured. Turkey reportedly attacked the same village on 26 July and fired on a YPG vehicle west of Tell Abyad.

In the early hours of 26 July, it was reported that F-16s yet again took off from Diyarbakır, this time only targeting PKK targets in Northern Iraq. Although there was no official government statement on the airstrikes, PKK sources claimed that one of their key bases in Hakurk was attacked. It was reported that the number of fighter jets taking part was significantly lower than the jets that took part in the previous waves of the operation. The same day, Turkish artillery shelled a PKK position in the north of Iraq over several hours.

On 28 July, for the first time since the beginning of the operation, two Turkish F-16s bombed PKK fighters inside Turkey, in the province of Sirnak.

In the night between 28–29 July, a new wave of shelling was launched, PKK camps in Zap, Metina, Gara, Avaşin-Basyan, Hakurk and the Qandil Mountains in northern Iraq were hit by Turkish fighter jets in an operation named after the recently killed gendarmerie major, "Arslan Kulaksız".

On 30 July, Turkish fighter jets flew over the YPG-held towns of Kobani and Sarrin at the same time as an ISIS attack on Sarrin town. On 31 July, Turkish reconnaissance aircraft once again flew over YPG territory in the north of Syria. While in Iraq, Turkish fighter jets shelling massively PKK position.

On 31 July, Turkist fighter fets shelling bases of PKK in the north of Iraq, 30 warplanes were involved. This operation was named "Hamza Yıldırım" in honor of the Corporal Hamza Yıldırım killed by the PKK in Turkey few day earlier.

PKK and ISIS attacks
On 22 July, in Ceylanpinar (Turkey), two policemen were killed after being shot in the head by PKK fighters.

On 23 July, one Turk soldier was killed and another was wounded on the border with Syria near Kilis in Turkey by ISIS fighters based in Syria. The same day, PKK fighters attacked policemen in Diyarbakir, killing one and wounding another.

On 24 July, members of the PKK abducted a policeman in the province of Diyarbakir. Additionally two police officers were injured, one with life-threatening injuries, after a suspected PKK grenade attack in Hakkari.

On 25 July, two Turkish soldiers were killed and four were wounded in a car bomb attack in the province of Diyarbakir in Turkey by PKK fighters.

On 26 July, in Istanbul, one policeman was shot and killed in the Gazi neighborhood during arrests against far-left militant Revolutionary People's Liberation Party–Front.

On 27 July, in the province of Mus, a Kurdish area, the Turkish head of the gendarmerie of the Malazgirt district was killed.

On 28 July, the pipeline between Turkey and Iran was blown up in the province of Agri in Turkey, according to the authorities PKK involvement was suspected while, in a Kurdish town a sergeant of the Turkish army was killed; according to the army, the PKK is responsible. In another province, a police officer was kidnapped by suspected Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) militants in southeastern Turkey.

On 29 July, the oil pipeline between Kirkuk (Iraq) and Ceyhan (Turkey) was blown up in the east Turkey, in the Sirnak province while in Hakkari, police quarters was under attack with heavy arms, including rocket launchers and long barrel rifles. In an other attack, one soldier was killed and 4 other were wounded in an attack in the Doğubeyazıt district in the eastern province of Ağri.

On 30 July, a policeman and a civilian was killed in the town of Cinar by PKK guerilla according to the authority while three soldiers were killed in the attack of their convoy by PKK fighters in the province of Sirnak.

On 31 July, two policemen and two PKK fighters were killed by the PKK, in a PKK raid on a police station in Pozanti, Adana. In a separate incident, PKK rebels bombed a railway line in the province of Kars in the country's east, killing a worker, while three PKK fighters were killed in Agri province.

On 1 August, two PKK fighters were killed and one civilian wounded in an attack in Çatak while PKK fighters took 70 hostages for two hours in the Kars-Erzurum-Iğdır highway. One soldier was killed in a mine explosion in Kars Province, reportedly by PKK.

On 2 August, a suicide bomber attacked a military station in Dogubayazit, Agri Province. The attack resulted in the deaths of two Turkish soldiers and 31 injuries. Separately one soldier was killed and four injured after a military convoy hit a mine in the Mardin Province. Both attacks were blamed on the PKK.

On 3 August, two Turkish soldiers were injured after a landmine exploded in Diyarbakir, reportedly by the PKK.

On 4 August, PKK forces attacked a guard post in Sirnak Province with an RPG killing one soldier and injuring another. In a separate attack, a mine killed two soldiers, also in Sirnak Province resulting in Turkish F-16s targeting PKK camps in the country's Hakkari Province, with no information on casualties.

On 5 August, a PKK bombing left one civilian dead in Cizre, Sirnak Province. Another bombing, this time in Bitlis, caused no casualties or damage. Clashes occurred, in Diyarbakir Province, Hakkari Province and Bitlis Province with no reported casualties.

On 6 August, clashes were reported in Tunceli Province, with no reported casualties.

On 7 August, PKK attacks left eight dead during numerous attacks. In Silopi, Sirnak Province, five were killed during clashes between Police and the PKK, resulting in the deaths of at least one soldier and one police officer. In Dogubayazit, Agri Province, a PKK attack left one soldier and one militant dead. A PKK attack on a police patrol in Milyat, Mardin Province killed one police officer. Elsewhere clashes were reported in Cizre and Uludere, Sirnak Province, Baskale, Van Province and Nusaybin, Mardin Province. PKK militants were also reported to have hijacked a minibus near Beytussebap, Sirnak Province.

On 10 August, nine were killed in a series of PKK attacks in Turkey. In Istanbul, a car bomb targeted a police station, injuring ten police officers, one police officer and two attackers were killed in subsequent clashes. Two others attackers launched an attack on the US consulate in Istanbul however there were no casualties, police arrest one of the attackers, a female, in clashes following the attack. In Silpoi, Sirnak Province, a mine hit a police convoy killing four officers. In Beytussebap, Sirnak Province, militants opened fire on a military helicopter, killing one soldier.

On 13 August, three were killed in PKK attacks, a gendarmerie sergeant was killed by a PKK landmine in Bingol Province. Two PKK insurgents were killed in clashes in Beytussebap, Sirnak Province.

On 14 August, four were killed in a series of PKK attacks. Three soldiers were killed and six injured during clashes with the PKK in Daglica, Hakkari Province. A civilian was killed during clashes between Police and the PKK in Baglar, Diyarbakir Province.

Reactions

 * 🇪🇺 European Union – EU Commissioner for foreign affairs, Federica Mogherini, stated that the EU supported the airstrikes against ISIL and offered condolences for those killed in recent terror attacks, while stressing the need to preserve the solution process with Kurdish rebels.
 * 🇩🇪 Germany – German Defence Minister Ursula von der Leyen stated that the German government saluted Turkey's change of policy and airstrikes against ISIL. German Chancellor Angela Merkel also expressed her support for Turkey's operations against terrorism, but stressed that the solution process with Kurdish rebels should be maintained.
 * 🇬🇧 United Kingdom – UK Prime Minister David Cameron expressed his support for Turkey's fight against terrorism during a phone call with Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu on 24 July.
 * 🇺🇸 United States – The US Deputy Special Presidential Envoy to the Global Coalition to Counter ISIL, Brett H. McGurk, stated that the US respect Turkey's right to self-defence against terrorist attacks from the PKK and condemned the PKK's acts of terrorism.