A senior Iranian Kurdish commander has been killed in a Turkish drone strike in the Syrian city of Qamishli, according to a local official.
Youssef Mohammed Rabbani, a leader of the Kurdistan Free Life Party (PJAK), was targeted by a Turkish drone that struck his car and killed at least four other people and wounded two on August 6th.
He was confirmed dead by local Kurdish authorities in Qamishli on Wednesday.
“Commander Youssef Mohammed Rabbani, who was in Qamishil for a visit, was confirmed dead amid the attack,” Hamrin Ali, the co-president of the local council of the Jazira region in the Kurdish-led Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (AANES) said at a press conference.
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“Rabbani was transferred to hospital immediately after the drone attack hit [his] vehicle along [with] several of his companions,” Ali added, according to the Iraqi Kurdish Esta news site.
“He died in the hospital,” Ali said.
PJAK seeks self-determination for Iran’s Kurdish minority and has waged an armed insurgency against the Iranian state.
It is closely linked to the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) and is designated a terrorist group by Iran, Turkey, and the United States.
Turkey has recently been stepping up airstrikes in areas of Syria controlled by the Kurdish People’s Protection Units (YPG) and the associated Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) in preparation for a possible ground operation against Syrian Kurdish forces. Turkey says a new assault could begin “at any time.”
Two weeks ago, four Syrian Kurdish security officers were killed in a Turkish strike in Raqqa province.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) said that the airstrike that killed Rabbani came about after cooperation between Turkish and Iranian intelligence.
This article was edited by The Syrian Observer. The Syrian Observer has not verified the content of this story. Responsibility for the information and views set out in this article lies entirely with the author.
