A suspected Turkish drone strike killed two journalists and injured another in Iraqi Kurdistan’s Sulaymaniyah province on Friday, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), citing local officials’ claims.
The strike killed Gülistan Tara, 40, a Turkish journalist, and Hero Bahadin, 27, an Iraqi video editor, both employed by Chatr Multimedia Production Company, which operates news channels Sterk TV and Aryen TV, funded by the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK).
Turkey, the US, and the European Union have designated the PKK as a terrorist organization, and Iraq’s National Security Council banned the group earlier this year.
“We are deeply saddened by the tragic August 23 drone strike that killed two journalists and injured a third in Iraqi Kurdistan,” said Yeganeh Rezaian, CPJ’s interim MENA program coordinator in Washington. She urged Turkish authorities to investigate the attack and determine whether the journalists were targeted for their work.
The journalists were reportedly on the job in an unmarked car on the Sulaymaniyah-Halabja road when they were hit, according to Chatr’s media director, Kamal Hamaraza, who emphasized that they had no political or military ties.
“We have faced ongoing threats from Turkish attacks due to our consistent coverage of their operations and violations in the Kurdistan region,” Hamaraza said.
Rebin Bakir, a video editor and social media officer injured in the attack, remains in stable condition after treatment for broken limbs, according to a Sterk TV anchor.
Turkey has ramped up military operations in the Kurdistan region targeting the PKK, including a strike on July 8 that killed a Çira TV reporter in Sinjar.
Local security authorities did not immediately issue a statement, and Turkey’s UN mission has not responded to requests for comment.
