The New Nation - Internet Edition

Reuters, Ankara

The Turkish army said on Saturday that it killed more than 150 Kurdish PKK fighters in air strikes in northern Iraq this week, but the rebel group denied this and security forces in the region also expressed skepticism.

The Turkish General Staff, in a statement on its website, said its warplanes had destroyed all the PKK posts they had targeted in bombing operations in Iraq's Qandil area on Thursday and Friday.

"It was established that more than 150 terrorists were left ineffective and the operation caused a big panic among the terror organization's members," the statement said.