Turkey's Defense Minister Yasar Guler announced on Wednesday that the country's armed forces "neutralized" 59 individuals in Syria and northern Iraq in response to the killing of 12 Turkish soldiers by the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK). The Turkish armed forces and intelligence agency conducted cross-border airstrikes targeting 71 locations in retaliation for the attacks on Turkish troops on December 22-23 in northern Iraq, where the PKK is based.

"In retaliation for those attacks, we conducted airstrikes on 71 targets. A total of 59 terrorists were neutralized in air campaigns, clashes, and other strikes," stated Guler during a meeting with army top brass in Ankara.

Local media in Syria reported several attacks on infrastructure, including oil facilities, in areas controlled by Kurdish groups as part of the Turkish retaliation.