#HTE

Kurdish Residents Return to Their Devastated City in Southeast Turkey (19 photos)

Late last year, Turkish authorities fighting militants of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) imposed a 24-hour curfew on several predominantly Kurdish cities in southeastern Turkey, then sent in troops and airstrikes. The Turkish government has now declared their operation a success, and has relaxed the curfew in some cities. One such city, Cizre, is home to about 130,000 residents, many of whom were allowed back home for the first time in months, discovering widespread destruction resulting from the military operation. Turkish armed forces have been battling PKK rebels in the area for decades, but have stepped up their actions in recent months—while at the same time, bombing other Kurdish groups and ISIS militants in nearby Syria. Currently, Turkey, ISIS, and the PKK are all fighting each other in a hostile triangle at the meeting of the borders of Turkey, Syria, and Iraq.