Turkey steps up PKK offensive in Iraq

By Daren Butler

CIZRE, Turkey (Reuters) - Turkish troops intensified their offensive against Kurdish PKK guerrillas in northern Iraq on Saturday, two days after crossing the mountainous border in a campaign Turkey's allies hope will be short and limited.

Backed up by warplanes, artillery and combat helicopters, troops killed 35 rebels in the remote mountainous area on Saturday, the Turkish General Staff said, taking the total PKK death toll since a major offensive began on Thursday to 79.

The Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), which has been battling for decades to create a Kurdish homeland in southeast Turkey, threatened reprisal attacks on Turkish soil.

Ankara says it was forced to launch a cross-border offensive after Iraqi authorities failed to stop an estimated 3,000 PKK members from using northern Iraq as a base to stage deadly attacks against soldiers and civilians inside Turkish territory.

A PKK spokesman told Reuters the guerrillas had recovered the bodies of 15 of the 22 Turkish soldiers they say they have killed. He declined to comment on rebel casualties.

In its statement, the General Staff confirmed the deaths of just seven of its soldiers, two of them on Saturday.

It is virtually impossible to verify the claims of either side because the fighting is taking place in largely inaccessible terrain in tough winter conditions.

The General Staff released new pictures of the operation, including helicopters hovering over snowy peaks and soldiers in white camouflage uniforms striding through the snow.