Turkey Launches Air Strikes on Kurdish Rebels in Northern Iraq

Turkey's military said Monday that it had carried out an air strike inside northern Iraq overnight against Kurdish separatist rebels.

On Sunday, the military accused Iraq's Kurdish leaders of tolerating Kurdish rebels who use Iraq as a base to attack Turkish soldiers.

Turkish General Hasan Igsiz said that the local Kurdish administration in northern Iraq refuses to cooperate with the Turkish military.

He said the Turkish military expects the Iraqi Kurds to consider the rebel Kurdistan Workers Party, or PKK, a terrorist organization, and to stop supporting it.

The general made the comments as top government and military officials attended the funerals of 15 soldiers killed by PKK rebels Friday.

Baghdad condemned Friday's deadly attack.

The rebels have been fighting for Kurdish autonomy in southeastern Turkey for more than two decades. At least 37,000 people have died in the violence.

Some information for this report was provided by AFP, AP and Reuters.