Turkish jets, artillery target Kurds

BAGHDAD, Oct. 10 (UPI) -- Suspected Kurdish insurgents in northern Iraq have been attacked by Turkish jets and artillery, army officials say.

A statement from the Turkish army said the attacks were focused on suspected Kurdistan Workers Party, or PKK, insurgents who have been conducting raids across the border during the last week, the BBC reported Friday.

"A large group of terrorists was detected while trying to sneak into Turkey last night through the border in northern Iraq. Most of them were eliminated with the help of the air force," the army said of Thursday night's attacks.

The recent spate of suspected insurgency attacks in Turkey left more than 20 people dead.

Military officials did not say how many suspected insurgents died in the artillery and aerial attacks.

The BBC said since PKK insurgents began fighting for control of their former homeland in Turkey in 1984, a total of more than 40,000 people have been killed in related conflicts.