Casualty Recording ▸ Conflicts

Turkish Military in Iraq & Syria

Turkey fought numerous military actors after intervening militarily in the Syrian Civil War in 2015, primarily against Kurdish forces but also at times the Islamic State. In northern Iraq, Turkey’s military campaign against Kurdish militant groups has expanded in recent years.

Airwars has documented hundreds of allegations of civilian harm by Turkish strikes against Kurdish-affiliated forces in Iraq and Syria since 2015.

Airwars estimate of civilian deaths

1,009 – 1,493

Locally reported civilian deaths from declared or likely Turkish Military actions in Iraq and Syria for which the reporting was assessed by Airwars as Fair, or have been Confirmed by the Turkish Military. These originate from 980 separate alleged incidents.

215 – 242
children likely killed
150 – 170
women likely killed
2,439
likely injured
2,230
named victims

Turkish Military estimate of civilian deaths

0

Confirmed civilian deaths, from Turkish Military actions in Iraq and Syria, originating from 0 separate incidents of civilian harm.

civilians confirmed injured
Alleged deaths
1,752 – 2,484
Locally reported civilian deaths from Turkish Military actions in Iraq and Syria.
980 seperate alleged incidents
Confirmed or Fair
1,009 – 1,493
Civilian deaths for which the reporting was assessed by Airwars as Fair, or have been Confirmed by Turkish Military
731 seperate alleged incidents
Weak
116 – 134
Civilian deaths for which the reporting was assessed by Airwars as Weak.
164 seperate alleged incidents
Contested
326 – 556
Civilian deaths for which the reporting is assessed by Airwars as Contested.
82 seperate alleged incidents
Discounted
301
Civilian deaths were Discounted by Airwars after assessment.
2 seperate alleged incidents
969 incidents
Order results by:
Incident Date ↓ Publication Date

Incident Date

30 January 2018

Incident Code

TS142

Location

جنديرس, Rajo, Afrin, Aleppo, Syria
The Kurish Red Crescent reported: “The savagery of the Turkish aggression in Afrin was not limited to civilians only, but also to the media. A bombardment targeted a car in Rajo today, carrying a team of four journalists, including correspondents of foreign media agencies and four other civilians. They are being treated by the Kurdish…

Summary

Published
30 January 2018
Civilians reported injured
8
Military Actor
Turkish Military
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Incident Date

30 January 2018

Incident Code

TS143

Location

قسطل جندو, Qastal Jando, Aleppo, Syria
Rumaf reported alleged Turkish shelling on the outskirts of Qastal Jendo, “causing material damage and injuring civilians, including children.” No additional details are presently known.

Summary

Published
30 January 2018
Civilians reported injured
3
Military Actor
Turkish Military
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Incident Date

29 January 2018

Incident Code

TS138

Location

جنديرس, Jindires, Afrin, Aleppo, Syria
The Step News Agency reported that there were “killed and wounded in the ranks of civilians as a result of Turkish raids targeting the area of the Jendres countryside”. Other sources also reported an unspecified number of killed and wounded civilians. There are no other details available at this time.

Summary

Published
29 January 2018
Civilians reported killed
2
Civilians reported injured
2
Military Actor
Turkish Military
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Incident Date

29 January 2018

Incident Code

TS139

Location

راحو, Rajo, Aleppo, Syria
The Kurdish Red Crescent reported that two named civilians were injured in the Rajo area. Younews reported that Turkish helicopters had targeted Rajo, while according to maf news there were “intensive Turkish air raids”. However, neither source mentioned civilian casualties. There are no other details at this time.

Summary

Published
29 January 2018
Civilians reported injured
2
Military Actor
Turkish Military
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Incident Date

29 January 2018

Incident Code

TS140

Location

شيا عفرين, Shya, Aleppo, Syria
The Kurdish Red Crescent reported the death of an elderly man in military action in the Shya area. The victim was also named by KDP, Hawar news and Alitihad Press. According to Alitihad Press, the victim “died in the hospital after serious injuries to his body.” There are no other details at this time.

Summary

Published
29 January 2018
Civilians reported killed
1
Military Actor
Turkish Military
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Incident Date

28 January 2018

Incident Code

TS133

Location

حج خليل, Haj Khalil village, Rajo district, Afrin, Aleppo, Syria
Two or more civilians died in an alleged Turkish shelling of Haj Khalil village, according to local media. A number of sources referred to the event as “a horrific massacre”. Rumaf reported that “children and elderly” were targeted in the attack. According to Military Council for Manbij and surrounding area [SDF], which published graphic images…

Summary

Published
28 January 2018
Civilians reported killed
2
Civilians reported injured
2
Military Actor
Turkish Military
View Incident →

Research and Investigations

View all →
17 May, 2023
Visualisation
Iraq

Reported civilian deaths from Turkish Military strikes in Iraq

Database tracks casualties in Iraq during Turkish strikes
6 Sep, 2022
Visualisation
Iraq, Syria

Turkish Military in Iraq and Syria Casualty Map

Turkey has conducted hundreds of unilateral air and artillery strikes in both Syria and Iraq – as well as a small number of actions as part of the US-led Coalition against so-called Islamic State. From July 2015 in Iraq, occasional unilateral Turkish airstrikes began targeting Kurdish militants in northern Kurdistan. Thirteen months later, the first […]
8 Feb, 2022
Investigations
Iraq

Who killed Ahmed and Youssef?

When two Iraqi holidaymakers were killed in the Kurdish region of the country, the finger of blame turned to Turkish strikes. But this investigation finds a roadside bomb was the more likely cause.
25 Feb, 2021
Research
Iraq, Türkiye

Renewed military campaign in northern Iraq against PKK sees deaths of 13 Turkish captives

A renewed campaign by Turkey in mid February against a Kurdish militant faction – which has seen Turkish troops pushing deeper than ever before into northern Iraq – also saw the deaths of thirteen Turkish civilian and military captives in a highly controversial attack, Airwars monitoring of the region shows. On February 10th, the Turkish […]
24 Dec, 2019
Update
Syria

More than 220 civilians likely killed in Turkish invasion of northern Syria

Eleven weeks on from the October 9th launch of a Turkish-led offensive against Kurds in northern Syria, known as ‘Operation Peace Spring’, fighting continues to rage with civilians still encountering significant violence. Since the beginning of the latest clashes, Airwars researchers have overall monitored between 244 and 312 reported civilian deaths resulting from air, artillery […]
18 Oct, 2019
Update
Syria, Türkiye

Civilians severely at risk from Turkish invasion of Northern Syria

Airwars monitors locally reported civilian harm from all Turkish air and artillery strikes in Iraq and Syria, as well as from Kurdish counterfire actions. Our database can be found here. More than 120 civilian deaths have been locally alleged in eight days of fighting in northern Syria to October 16th, following a Turkish-led offensive, ‘Operation […]