Fars: Iran denies joint operation with Turkey against PKK

President of Turkey Recep Tayyip Erdogan (L) meets Iranian President Hassan Rouhani (R) ahead of trilateral summit between Turkey, Iran and Russia on 7 September 2018 in Tehran, Iran [Kayhan Özer/Anadolu Agency]

Turkey repeated on Monday that it and Iran were carrying out a joint operation against Kurdish militants, despite a denial from Tehran that it was involved, Reuters reports.

Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said the joint operation targeting militants from the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) on Monday was the first of its kind and that he hoped more would follow.

It was not clear where the operation was happening.

Earlier on Monday, Iran’s semi-official Fars news agency reported that its army denied involvement in the operation after Turkish Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu said both countries were carrying out a joint operation against the PKK.

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“The Turkish army carried out the operation against the PKK, but Iran’s armed forces were not part of the operation,” a source at Iran’s armed forces told Fars.

“Iran’s armed forces will severely counter any group that intends to create insecurity in our country,” the source added.

It was not immediately clear why the two countries were offering contradictory accounts.

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