Minister: Turkey to take control of PKK's Mt. Qandil soon

Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu on Saturday said Turkey is capable of taking control of northern Iraq’s Mount Qandil region whenever it wants.

In an interview to CNN Turk, Soylu said: “Turkey will see its heroes in Qandil very soon. It is only a matter of timing.”

Soylu noted that Qandil is now a close target for Turkey.

Airstrikes on PKK targets in northern Iraq, where the group has its main base, near the Iranian border, have been carried out regularly since July 2015.

The PKK, considered a terrorist organisation by Turkey, the European Union and United States, has for decades been based in the Qandil mountain range near Iraq’s border with Iran. Turkey claims that the PKK’s armed campaign, which has lasted for more than three decades, has killed over 40,000 people.