Key points
- We are deeply saddened: Pakistan Foreign Office spox
- Says Pakistan stands in firm solidarity with Turkiye
- Soldiers’ bodies transported back to their hometowns
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan on Tuesday conveyed condolences over the death of 12 Turkish soldiers after they were exposed to methane gas during a search mission in northern Iraq.
“We are deeply saddened to learn that 12 Turkish soldiers were martyred, after being exposed to methane gas during a search mission in the Claw-Lock Operation zone,” Foreign Office spokesperson Shafqat Ali Khan said in a statement.
He prayed for “Allah’s mercy upon the martyrs” and expressed “deepest condolences to the bereaved families”.
We are deeply saddened to learn that 12 Turkish soldiers were martyred, after being exposed to methane gas during a search mission in the Claw-Lock Operation zone.
We wish Allah’s mercy upon the martyrs and express deepest condolences to the bereaved families.
Pakistan 🇵🇰…
— Ministry of Foreign Affairs – Pakistan (@ForeignOfficePk) July 8, 2025
The spokesperson also reiterated that Pakistan stood in firm solidarity with brotherly Turkiye in this moment of grief.
According to the Turkish state-run Anadolu news agency, 12 soldiers died after being exposed to methane gas during a search operation in northern Iraq.
Millî Savunma Bakanı Yaşar Güler beraberinde TSK Komuta Kademesi ile gittiği Yüksekova’da şehitlerimiz için düzenlenen uğurlama törenine katıldı. Bakan Yaşar Güler, 6 kahraman silah arkadaşımızın son yolculuklarına uğurlandığı tören sonrası basın mensuplarına açıklamalarda… pic.twitter.com/uDUJLjLlYA
— T.C. Millî Savunma Bakanlığı (@tcsavunma) July 7, 2025
The soldiers were carrying out a sweep operation in a cave at an altitude of 2,795 feet used by militants of the outlawed PKK terror group in the Operation Claw-Lock zone when the incident occurred on Sunday.
According to the BBC, a farewell ceremony for some of the soldiers killed was held at an airport in the southern Turkish province of Hakkari on Monday.
Pençe-Kilit Harekâtı bölgesinde şehit düşen altı kahraman silah arkadaşımızın naaşları da defnedilmek üzere memleketlerine uğurlandı.
Yüksekova Selahaddin Eyyübi Havalimanındaki törene Millî Savunma Bakanı Yaşar Güler beraberinde; Genelkurmay Başkanı Orgeneral Metin Gürak,… pic.twitter.com/9TlXE9YUxd
— T.C. Millî Savunma Bakanlığı (@tcsavunma) July 7, 2025
It was attended by the Turkish defence minister and many high-ranking officials from the armed forces.
The bodies were then transported back to their hometowns.
