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
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Incident Date Publication Date ↓

Incident Date

16 March 2020

Incident Code

TS420

Location

ام الكيف, Um al Keif, Al Hassakah, Syria
According to ANF, a civilian was injured in Turkish forces and Turkey-backed militants' shelling of Um al Keif village in Tal Tamr, Syria on March 16th, 2020. "According to reports from the ground, the attack left a Syrian soldier and a civilian injured, who were taken to hospitals in Til Temir." No more details are…

Summary

Published
16 March 2020
Strike Type
Artillery
Civilians reported injured
1
Causes of Death / Injury
Heavy weapons and explosive munitions
Military Actor
Turkish Military
View Incident →

Incident Date

15 March 2020

Incident Code

TS419

Location

الشيخ عيسي, Shaykh Issa, Aleppo, Syria
According to ANF English, a child was reported injured in alleged Turkish shelling on Shaykh Issa in Tal Rifa'at, Aleppo, Syria on March 15th, 2020. "A 6-year-old boy named Ehmed Osman was injured in the attack." The source said the child was seriously injured in his feet and moved to hospital for treatment.  

Summary

Published
15 March 2020
Strike Type
Artillery
Civilians reported injured
1
Causes of Death / Injury
Heavy weapons and explosive munitions
Military Actor
Turkish Military
View Incident →

Incident Date

8 March 2020

Incident Code

TS418

Location

عرب حسن, Arab Hassan, Aleppo, Syria
A woman was reported injured in alleged Turkey forces/ pro-Turkey militants shelling of Arab Hassan in Northwest Manbej, Aleppo on March 8th, 2020, according to local sources. @NotWoofers said the village was attacked with six mortars. No further details are available.

Summary

Published
8 March 2020
Strike Type
Artillery
Civilians reported injured
1
Causes of Death / Injury
Heavy weapons and explosive munitions
Military Actor
Turkish Military
View Incident →

Incident Date

7 March 2020

Incident Code

TS417A

Location

الخالدية, Khaldiyah, Raqqa, Syria
According to ANF, Turkey and Turkey-backed militants launched series of attacks on Khaldiyah and Hoshan villages, and the refugee camp in Ain Issa and the international M4 highway in Syria on March 7th, 2020. This led to the injury of a civilian in Khaldiyah village. No further information is available now.

Summary

Published
7 March 2020
Strike Type
Artillery
Civilians reported injured
1
Causes of Death / Injury
Heavy weapons and explosive munitions
Military Actor
Turkish Military
View Incident →

Incident Date

2 March 2020

Incident Code

TS417

Location

جورين, Jourin, Hama, Syria
The Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA) reported that two civilians were killed when pro-Turkey militants launched artillery on Jorin in Hama, Syria on March 2nd, 2020. The victims are a child and a woman. Seven civilians are reported injured in the attack. "A woman and a child were martyred while seven civilians were injured in…

Summary

Published
2 March 2020
Strike Type
Artillery
Civilians reported killed
2
Civilians reported injured
7
Causes of Death / Injury
Heavy weapons and explosive munitions
Military Actor
Turkish Military
View Incident →

Incident Date

28 February 2020

Incident Code

TS416

Location

العريمة‎, Al Arimah , Aleppo, Syria
Up to two civilians were reported killed and several others injured in alleged Turkey artillery attack on Al Arimah town, west of Manbij city in northeastern Aleppo, Syria on February 28th, 2020, according to local sources. The attack is also believed to have caused four deaths and five injuries among regime forces and 'loyalists' as…

Summary

Published
28 February 2020
Strike Type
Artillery
Civilians reported killed
2
Civilians reported injured
1
Causes of Death / Injury
Heavy weapons and explosive munitions
Military Actor
Turkish Military
View Incident →

Research and Investigations

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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 […]