Turkish military: 2 U.S. war planes violated Turkish airspace

Above: F-16s of the Turkish Air Force, one of the oldest air forces in the world. Turkey operates one of the largest combat aircraft fleets in NATO, while Iraq's air force is virtually nonexistant.

ANKARA, Turkey (AP) - Two U.S. war planes violated Turkey's airspace over the border with Iraq for four minutes this week, Turkey's military said Sunday.

In a statement posted on its Web site, the military said the two F-16 jets roamed into the Turkish airspace on Thursday, over the region of Uzumlu, in the province of Hakkari which borders northern Iraq.

The Turkish Foreign Ministry had been informed of the violation, and had been asked to make the necessary initiative, the military said.

The violation comes amid intensified debate in Turkey about whether to conduct a cross-border operation into northern Iraq to pursue separatist Kurdish rebels who stage attacks inside Turkey from bases there.

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