Operation Dawn (1997)

Operation Dawn
Part of the Kurdish–Turkish conflict and Iraqi Kurdish Civil War
Date 25 September – 15 October 1997 Location Iraqi Kurdistan Result Turkish victory (Turkish claim) [1]
Belligerents
Turkey Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP)	Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK)[2]
Commanders and leaders
	Ali Haydar Kaytan[3]
Strength
Turkey: 15,000 KDP: 8,000 Total: 27,000	10,000-12,000
Casualties and losses
31 killed, 91 wounded	865 killed, 37 captured (According to Turkey)

Operation Dawn (Turkish: Şafak Harekâtı) was a cross-border operation by the Turkish Armed Forces into northern Iraq between 25 September and 15 October 1997 against the Kurdistan Workers' Party.

Unsuccessful result of Operation Hammer (1997) let to this operation.^[4]

Casualties

Turkey announced fatalities of a total of 31 personnel made up of 3 commissioned officers, 24 soldiers and 4 village guards. Turkey announced the injured at a total of 91 personnel made out of 5 commissioned officers, 7 noncommissioned officers, 77 soldiers, and 2 village guards. Turkey announced the total number of militants neutralized at a total of 902 with 865 being killed and 37 being captured live or injured.^[5] Clashes between the PKK and KDP resulted in 'considerable losses' for the KDP.^[6]

References

1. Deterring Terrorism: Theory and Practice. Stanford University Press.
2. "THE ARAB SPRING, ITS EFFECTS ON THE KURDS, AND THE APPROACHES OF TURKEY, IRAN, SYRIA, AND IRAQ ON THE KURDISH ISSUE". web.archive.org. Retrieved 2014-10-12.
3. Gunter, M.M. (1997). The Kurds and the Future of Turkey. Palgrave Macmillan. p. 35. ISBN 9780312172657. Retrieved 2014-10-12.
4. "Hitting the Kurds from All Sides". TIME. Retrieved 14 January 2016.
5. "Şafak harekatı (25 Eylül - 15 Ekim 1997)". Hürriyet. Retrieved 2007-10-11.
6. United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. "Refworld | Chronology for Kurds in Turkey". unhcr.org. Retrieved 2014-10-12.