The Turkish Armed Forces (TSK) has issued a statement of condolence for families of 35 people who were mistakenly killed by military airstrikes near the Turkish border in northern Iraq on Wednesday night.
The statement was issued online on Friday on the website of the General Staff, which was titled “The Message of Condolence of Turkish Armed Forces.†“We wish God’s mercy upon our citizens who lost their lives in the incident that took place on the night of Dec. 28, 2011, and we also convey our condolences to their families,†the military said in the statement.
Turkish warplanes mistakenly killed 35 smugglers and other villagers in an operation targeting the terrorist Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) in Iraq on Wednesday night.
The government acknowledged that the victims were smugglers, not terrorists. The military said in an earlier statement that the warplanes targeted the group based on intelligence that suggested that a group of weapon-carrying terrorists were heading towards the Turkish border to stage attacks on the military.
“Administrative and judicial investigations are underway, and procedures are being followed with respect to the incident,†the General Staff said in a statement on Thursday.