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2015–2016 Şırnak clashes
Part of the third phase of the Turkey–PKK conflict
Date	August 2015–May 2016
Location	Şırnak, Turkey
Caused by	Self-government request to establish autonomous government in Şırnak
Methods	Armed conflict Urban guerrilla warfare
Resulted in	Turkish Government victory PKK fail to establish autonomous region
Parties
Turkey PÖH Land Forces Special Forces SAS Village guards Air Force Kurdistan Communities Union PKK HPG YDG-H (until December 2015) YPS (from December 2015)
Lead figures
Turan Bedirhanoğlu Duran Kalkan Mustafa Karasu
Number
20,000 personnel ~200 maroon berets Unknown
Casualties and losses
117 killed in total 1,464 killed in total
92 civilians killed in Cizre (according to human rights groups)

The 2015–2016 Şırnak clashes were a series of armed clashes in the southeastern Şırnak province, between Turkish government forces and Kurdish armed groups, as part of the Turkish–Kurdish conflict.

Background

Following the 2015 Suruç bombing, the ceasefire between the Turkish government and the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) ended after the PKK executed two police officers in their sleep on 22 July. In retaliation, the Turkish Air Force began striking PKK camps in northern Iraq, beginning a new phase of the Turkey–PKK conflict. The re-escalation of the conflict between the PKK and the Turkish government caused a rise of discontent in the Kurdish-majority southeast.

Military action

2015

The first armed incident in Şırnak Province took place on 28 July when the Turkish Air Force bombed PKK fighters in the countryside. The clashes in Şırnak began to escalate following a bomb explosion that damaged a section of the Kirkuk–Ceyhan pipeline within Şırnak Province on July 29 and an ambush by the PKK on July 30 which killed 3 Turkish soldiers. On 4 August, PKK forces attacked a guard post in Şırnak Province with an RPG, killing one soldier and injuring another. In a separate incident in the province, a mine killed two soldiers. Turkish F-16s targeting PKK camps in Hakkari Province in an act of retaliation. A PKK bomb explosion killed one civilian in Cizre on 5 August.

On 7 August, Turkish Police clashed with PKK and YDG-H forces in Silopi, Cizre and Uludere and PKK-affiliated militants hijacked a minibus in Beytüşşebap. 4 police officers and 1 army conscript were killed by separate PKK-affiliated attacks in Şırnak Province on 10 August. Turkish forces killed 2 PKK militants following clashes in Beytüşşebap on 13 August. Between 4–12 September, Turkey placed the first curfew on Cizre during which it launched a military operation against the militia YDG-H. 30 people were killed during the clashes, HDP leader Selahattin Demirtaş claiming 20 of which were civilians although the Turkish government challenged this claim. Heavy clashes in Şırnak Province took place between 25–26 September, with the PKK claiming to have killed 75 soldiers and losing 14 militants while Turkish forces claimed to have killed 36 militants and lost 2 soldiers.

On 21 November, Turkish Air Force targeted PKK positions in Şırnak Province. On the 14 December the Turkish government declared a twenty-four hour curfew for the cities Silopi and Cizre. which were followed by large scale military operations by the Turkish forces launched on the 15 December against the YDG-H militias who set up barricades in the towns. By 17 December, Turkish forces had claimed to have killed between 55–70 alleged PKK militants in the two towns. The HDP leader Selahattin Demirtaş called on locals to resist the operations, denounced the government use of force, and called both the local people and government to find constructive actions. On 31 December, 1 soldier was killed and 5 others injured following a PKK rocket attack.

2016

This section needs expansion. You can help by adding to it. (May 2017)

On 19 January 2016 the twenty-four hour curfew in place since 14 December 2015 was reduced to a curfew only imposed in the hours between 6 pm and 5am.

See also

• Battle of Şırnak
• September 2012 Beytüşşebap attack

References

1. ^ "PKK Şırnak'tan temizleniyor! Sona gelindi... - Son Dakika Gündem Haberleri". Milliyet. 2016-05-24. Retrieved 2017-02-28.
2. "Şırnak demokratik özerklik ilan etti - Cumhuriyet Türkiye Haberleri". Cumhuriyet. Retrieved 2017-02-28.
3. ^ "Turkey deploying special commandos to Cizre - LOCAL". Hurriyet Daily News. Retrieved 2017-02-28.
4. "Köy korucuları: Kürtleri PKK'dan koruyoruz". Ensonhaber.com. Retrieved 2017-02-28.
5. "ANF | HPG: Şırnak'ta 11 asker öldürüldü". Anfturkce.net. Retrieved 2017-02-28.
6. "ANF | Ajansa Nûçeyan a Firatê". www.anfenglish.com:80. Archived from the original on 1 May 2016. Retrieved 15 January 2022.
7. "PKK assassination attempt against Şırnak's appointed administrator prevented". Daily Sabah. 2017-01-31. Retrieved 2017-02-28.
8. "Özerklik oyununa ağır darbe - Aktüel". Aktuel.com.tr. 2015-08-19. Retrieved 2017-02-28.
9. "Cizre ve Silopi'de 10 bin askerle operasyon: Tanklar ilçe merkezinde - Türkiye Haberleri". Radikal. 2015-12-16. Retrieved 2017-02-28.
10. ^ "Turkey eases curfew after assault on PKK rebels leaves Cizre in ruins". The Guardian. 2 March 2016. Retrieved 2017-02-28.
11. Marszal, Andrew (2015-07-22). "Kurdish militants claim 'revenge' killing of two Turkish policemen". Telegraph. Retrieved 2017-02-28.
12. "Turkey and the Kurds: The truce between Turkey and Kurdish militants is over". The Economist. 2015-07-26. Retrieved 2017-02-28.
13. "L'armée turque pilonne le PKK dans le sud-est". Le Figaro. 2015-07-28. Retrieved 2017-02-28.
14. "Oil pipeline blown up in east Turkey". Anadolu Agency. 2015-07-29. Retrieved 2017-02-28.
15. "Man killed in PKK bomb attack in eastern Turkey". Hurriyet Daily News. Retrieved 2017-02-28.
16. "Five killed as PKK continues its attacks in Turkey". Hurriyet Daily News. Retrieved 2017-02-28.
17. "Round-up: At least 6 security personnel killed in attacks in Istanbul, southeast Turkey". Hurriyet Daily News. Retrieved 2017-02-28.
18. "PKK kills four more soldiers as Turkey faces non-stop violence in east". Hurriyet Daily News. Retrieved 2017-02-28.
19. "More than 20 Cizre civilians dead during eight-day curfew: Relatives - Turkey News". Hürriyet Daily News. Retrieved 2020-04-26.
20. ^ "Who are the Kurdish militants fighting in Cizre?". Middle East Eye. Retrieved 2020-04-26.
21. "Turkey Kurds: Many dead in Cizre violence as MPs' march blocked". BBC News. 10 September 2015. Retrieved 2017-02-28.
22. "PKK: Dozens of Turkish soldiers killed in ongoing clashes". Rudaw. Retrieved 2017-02-28.
23. "Turkey says scores killed in southeastern clashes". Al Jazeera English. 2015-09-26. Retrieved 2017-02-28.
24. "Turkish military hits 23 PKK targets in N. Iraq". Daily Sabah. 2017-01-31. Retrieved 2017-02-28.
25. "Indefinite 24-hour curfew, over 200,000 in danger — Amnesty Urgent Actions". ua.amnesty.ch. Retrieved 2020-04-26.
26. "Turkish Army kills 55 Kurdish militants during battle, party calls for resistance". Sydney Morning Herald. 2015-12-19. Retrieved 2017-02-28.
27. "Turkey kills 70 Kurdish militants, vowing to prevent 'chaos'". BBC News. 19 December 2015. Retrieved 2017-02-28.
28. "HDP Co-Chair Demirtaş Urges Allout Resistance Against Turkish State Terror And Curfews". Kurdishquestion.com. 21 December 2015. Archived from the original on 20 January 2018. Retrieved 4 May 2017.
29. "Two Turkish police officers killed in southeastern Turkey". Hurriyet Daily News. Retrieved 2017-02-28.
30. "Turkey: Further information: Curfew partially lifted,, people remain at risk". Amnesty International. 22 January 2016. Retrieved 26 April 2020.

v t e Kurdistan Workers' Party insurgency
Timelines 1978–2015 2015–present Map
Turkey	State Government National Security Council Military Army Air Force Navy Gendarmerie Coast Guard Police MİT Village Guards Deep state Counter-Guerrilla Grey Wolves Turkish Revenge Brigade Susurluk scandal Ergenekon JİTEM
Kurdish groups	Insurgent KCK PKK History People's Defence Forces (HPG) Free Women's Units (YJA-STAR) National Liberation Front of Kurdistan (ERNK) Liberation Forces OF Kurdistan (HRK) People's Liberation Army of Kurdistan (ARGK) Democratic People's Union of Kurdish (YDK) Democratic Society Coordination of Kurdistan (CDK) Free Women's Union of Kurdistan (YAJK) Workers' Women Party of Kurdistan (PJKK) Free Women Party (PJA) Free Women's Party of Kurdistan (PAJK) Women's Liberation Movement of Kurdistan (KJB) Freedom and Democracy Congress of Kurdistan (KADEK) People's Congress (Kongra-Gel) Confederation Community of Kurdistan (KKK) Revolutionary Party of Kurdistan (PŞK) Workers Vanguard Party of Kurdistan (PPKK) TAK KDP/N PJAK KKP Free Youth Movement of Kurdistan (TECAK) Marxist–Leninist Communist Party (MLKP) Patriotic Revolutionary Youth Movement (YDG-H) PIK HİK KH (Hüda-Par) Allies DHP TDP ASALA (until the late 1980s) Political HEP (1990–1993) DEP (1993–1994) HADEP (1994–2003) DEHAP (1997–2005) DTH (2005) DTP (2005–2009) BDP (2008–2014) HDP (2012–present) DBP (2014–present) DEM (2023–present)
The conflict	1974–1984 Political violence in Turkey (1976–1980) Maraş massacre 1980 Turkish coup d'état 1984–1999 1984 PKK attacks Karageçit August 1986 Turkish incursion into northern Iraq Ortabağ March 1987 Turkish incursion into northern Iraq Pınarcık massacre Yeşilova incident Battle of Şırnak 1992 Taşdelen attack Battle of Kulp Operation Northern Iraq May 24, 1993 PKK attack Başbağlar massacre Lice massacre Winter Campaign of 1994–1995 Operation Steel Operation Hawk Operation Tokat 1996 Tunceli bombing Siege of Varto Sazak assault Operation Hammer Operation Dawn Operation Murat 1999 Istanbul bombings Blue Market massacre 1999–2004 2000 Turkish Hezbollah crackdown 2004–2012 2005 Kuşadası minibus bombing 2007 Ankara bombing October 2007 clashes in Hakkâri December 2007 Turkish incursion into northern Iraq 2008 Diyarbakır bombing 2008 Turkish incursion into northern Iraq 2008 Istanbul bombings October 2008 Aktütün attack Reşadiye shooting 2010 İskenderun attack 2010 Hakkâri bus bombing 2010 Istanbul bombing August 2011 Turkey–Iraq cross-border raids 2011 Hakkâri attack Roboski massacre June–August 2012 Hakkari clashes 2012 Gaziantep bombing September 2012 Beytüşşebap attack 2015–present 2015 Siirt bombing Operation Martyr Yalçın 2015 Hakkari assault Siege of Silvan (2015) Şırnak clashes (2015–2016) Siege of Sur (2016) February 2016 Lice bombing February 2016 Ankara bombing March 2016 Ankara bombing March 2016 Turkish incursion into northern Iraq 2016 Bursa bombing May 2016 Dürümlü bombing May 2016 Diyarbakır bombing 2016 Cizre bombing 2016 Elazığ bombing Assassination of Deryan Aktert December 2016 Istanbul bombings 2017 Diyarbakır bombing Turkish airstrikes on Sinjar (2018) 2018 Siirt raid 2018 Gercüş bombing 2019 Turkish offensive into north-eastern Syria 2020 İskenderun shootout Operation Claw-Eagle 2 Operation Claw-Lock Zakho resort attack 2022 Mersin attack Operation Claw-Sword 2023 Ankara bombing October 2023 Northeastern Syria clashes
Protests	Serhildan 1990 1991 1992 1999 2001 2005 2006 2008 2009 2011–2012 2014 Others Mothers of Diyarbakır
Peace process and peace efforts	1991–2004 Kurdish–Turkish peace initiatives 2013–2015 Solution process 1993 Kurdistan Workers' Party ceasefire Musa Anter peace train 2009–2010 Kurdistan Workers' Party ceasefire
Kurdish leaders	Insurgent Abdullah Öcalan Murat Karayılan Cemîl Bayik Bahoz Erdal Mustafa Karasu Duran Kalkan Haji Ahmadi Osman Öcalan Mahsum Korkmaz Şemdin Sakık Nizamettin Taş Mazlum Doğan Muhammad Mustafa Hüseyin Velioğlu Celal Başkale İsmail Özden Political Ahmet Fehmi Işıklar Yaşar Kaya Leyla Zana Hatip Dicle Orhan Doğan Ahmet Türk Murat Bozlak Tuncer Bakırhan Aysel Tuğluk Selahattin Demirtaş Nurettin Demirtaş Ayla Akat Ata Gültan Kışanak Pervin Buldan Emine Ayna Sebahat Tuncel Kemal Burkay Fatma Kurtulan Osman Baydemir Sırrı Süreyya Önder
Turkish leaders	Military Kenan Evren Tahsin Şahinkaya Bülend Ulusu Nurettin Ersin Necdet Üruğ Necip Torumtay Eşref Bitlis Doğan Güreş İsmail Hakkı Karadayı Hüseyin Kıvrıkoğlu Hilmi Özkök İbrahim Fırtına Faruk Cömert Yaşar Büyükanıt Aydoğan Babaoğlu İlker Başbuğ Işık Koşaner Erdal Ceylanoğlu Necdet Özel Hayri Kıvrıkoğlu Political Turgut Özal Süleyman Demirel Bülent Ecevit Ali Bozer Yıldırım Akbulut Mesut Yılmaz Erdal İnönü Tansu Çiller Mesut Yılmaz Necmettin Erbakan Ahmet Necdet Sezer Abdullah Gül Recep Tayyip Erdoğan Süleyman Soylu
See also	Memorials, monuments and military cemeteries 33 Martyrs Memorial Düzce Military Cemetery Monument of the Martyrs of Internal Security Other Iraqi–Kurdish conflict Kurdish separatism in Iran Rojava conflict Kurdish rebellions in Turkey Kurdish refugees Human rights of Kurdish people in Turkey Kurdish villages depopulated by Turkey Turkish war crimes Iraq operations

• History of Şırnak
• Kurdish protests in Turkey
• Kurdish–Turkish conflict (2015–present)
• 2015 in Turkey
• 2016 in Turkey
• Military operations involving Turkey