Turkey launches air strikes on PKK in Iraq and southeast Turkey

ANKARA (Reuters) - Turkish warplanes struck Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) militant targets in northern Iraq and southeast Turkey on Friday night, the latest raids in a military campaign against the rebel group. The Turkish army said it hit 23 PKK targets, including shelters and supply points, in Zap, Avasin-Baysan, Hakurk and Qandil areas in northern Iraq with 22 fighter jets. The air strikes were carried out between the hours of 11 p.m. and 2 a.m., the army said. It also said it hit PKK locations in Sirnak province in Turkey's southeast, including shelters and gun points. The PKK's 31-year-old conflict with the state erupted anew in July, with Turkey launching air strikes on militant camps in response to attacks on its security forces, ending a March 2013 ceasefire. Hundreds have been killed in the latest fighting. Designated a terrorist group by Turkey, the United States and European Union, the PKK launched a separatist insurgency in 1984 in which more than 40,000 people have been killed. The state launched peace talks with its jailed leader in 2012. (Writing by Ece Toksabay; Editing by Stephen Powell)