Turkey to continue destroying PKK strongholds in Qandil

Turkey will continue striking down PKK terrorists in northern Iraq's Mt. Qandil, a major terror hideout, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said on Tuesday.

"We have destroyed and will continue destroying the separatist [PKK] terrorist organization's strongholds in [Mt.] Qandil," Erdoğan said at his ruling Justice and Development (AK) Party's election rally in southern Adana province.

Airstrikes on PKK targets in northern Iraq have been carried out regularly since July 2015, when the PKK resumed its decades-long armed campaign.

In recent days, Turkish officials have suggested that the Mt. Qandil region in northern Iraq near the Iranian border -- where the terrorist group has its headquarters -- may be the target of a future operation.

The PKK is listed as a terrorist organization by Turkey as well as the U.S. and the EU.

In its terror campaign against Turkey, which has lasted for more than three decades, over 40,000 people have been killed, including women and children.