Turkish military drone shot down over Kirkuk, Iraqi military official says

KIRKUK — A drone that fell from the sky over Kirkuk has been identified as Turkish, according to Iraqi military officers.

Witnesses reported seeing the object ablaze as it descended, causing a fire upon impact. No casualties have been reported.

The object, identified as the body of an aerial vehicle, was photographed with the word “tehlike” emblazoned on it, which means “danger” in Turkish.

A security source told 964media that the drone was shot down by Iraqi forces from inside Kirkuk International Airport.

Amr Shwani, spokesperson for Kirkuk Police Command, told 964media that “An unidentified drone entered Iraqi airspace and was intercepted on the outskirts of Kirkuk, crashing in the Ts’in neighborhood. One house sustained material damage, but no casualties have been reported.”

Another security source in Kirkuk, speaking on condition of anonymity, told 964media that “a Turkish drone entered the area between Qarahanjir and Chiman, apparently attempting to conduct a bombing. Iraqi forces opened fire on it, forcing the drone into Kirkuk’s airspace.”

“It took four or five attempts to shoot it down, and it was finally hit on the fifth attempt, which is why residents heard multiple explosions,” the source added.

An Iraqi military official at the scene confirmed to reporters that “it was a Turkish drone shot down by Iraqi forces.” The incident followed a loud explosion heard in a Kurdish neighborhood of Kirkuk, prompting videos to circulate showing the fiery descent and crash.

Abdul Salam Al-Hamoudi, Deputy Commander of Air Defense for the Northern Region of the Iraqi Army, told reporters at the scene: “A Turkish drone violated Iraqi airspace from the direction of Sulaymaniyah. On the orders of the Commander of Air Defense, we deployed Iraqi weapons to shoot it down. The drone was intercepted over the Chiman area.”

From the debris, it appears that the drone is an AKSUNGUR UAV, an advanced medium-altitude, long-endurance unmanned aerial vehicle developed by Turkish Aerospace Industries. The AKSUNGUR is designed for various military and civilian missions and can operate for up to 50 hours at altitudes of 40,000 feet.

Object with the Turkish word 'tehlike', meaning danger, emblazoned on it.

Intensified Turkish military operations in the Kurdistan Region, targeting the PKK—a group engaged in a decades-long insurgency against Turkey—have escalated in recent months, particularly in areas like the Amedi district of Duhok. These operations have resulted in numerous casualties and significant environmental damage across rural and mountainous regions in Duhok and Sulaymaniyah.

In March, the PKK claimed to have downed 15 drones since February 2023 and has since claimed the downing of several more drones within the Kurdistan Region. The PKK also said that it had acquired ‘new missile systems’ specifically to target Turkish drones, though it did not disclose details regarding the type or quantity of these systems.

Since the launch of Operation Claw-Lock in April 2022, Turkey has made substantial military advances. In July, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan claimed that Kurdish forces were “completely trapped” in Iraq and Syria, although clashes continue as Turkish forces push further into the Kurdistan Region.

Two days prior, Iraqi authorities condemned the renewed Turkish military operations and “incursions” in northern Iraq, urging Ankara to pursue diplomatic cooperation to address shared security concerns. Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia’ Al-Sudani chaired a meeting of the Ministerial Council for National Security, where members discussed “the interventions and violations being carried out by Turkish forces in the shared border areas,” according to an official statement.

A report by Community Peacemaker Teams on Aug. 14 indicated that military actions by Turkey and Iran in the region since 1991 have killed 425 civilians and injured 420 others, with most casualties resulting from Turkish operations.

Developing…